BOOST THE BORDER PATROL

Hutchison's efforts will help El Paso

Kay Bailey Hutchison, Republic senator from Texas, has done the border area
and El Paso in particular a giant favor.

At Hutchison's urging, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved massive
funding for, among other items, new Border Patrol stations for Texas, and
upgrading existing checkpoints and other patrol facilities.

The bill also will fund 1,000 new Border Patrol agents, although El Paso
won't benefit from that because the sector is almost at full strength.

The bill now goes to the full Senate, which should pass it, and to the
House, where it has the strong backing of Rep. Silvestre Reyes, D-El Paso.
The House is urged to speedily OK the measure.

Some big money is headed El Paso's way, and it's needed. Some of the
outlying Border Patrol stations, such as Fort Hancock, are struggling with
woefully outdated facilities. Yet these stations, and the personnel who have
to call them home, are in the forefront of patrol activities, everything
from intercepting smuggled narcotics to catching undocumented immigrants.

So it's good to note that Fort Hancock will be receiving nearly $5 million,
while other stations such as Santa Teresa and Sierra Blanca, plus the
Service Processing Center on Montana and sector checkpoints, will also
benefit.

Also of great importance is funding for 25 new assistant U.S. attorneys for
West Texas to help the seriously overburdened federal courts.

Of course, another great help would be legislation, now in House committee,
providing for eight permanent new federal judgeships, two of which would be
in the Western District of Texas and could be of immense help to El Paso.

The combination of new federal judges and an infusion of new prosecutors
would do much to ease current and future judicial problems in the El Paso
Southwest.

It's time Congress did something more substantive for the border. El Paso
and many other places have been shortchanged for long enough when it comes
to protecting the borders. Lawmakers and other officials are quick to pay
lip service to the need for more resources to confront border problems, but
are short on action.

Promises of more Border Patrol agents, even though mandated by Congress,
have gone unheeded. More and improved equipment is needed to combat
increasing and more-sophisticated smuggling of drugs and human beings. It's
way past time for something substantive to be done.

"We are bringing a major realignment of federal resources to the Southwest
border that will take the burden off local law enforcement personnel and
prosecutorial personnel," Hutchison said. "The federal government is making
a half-billion dollar down payment on fulfilling its obligation to secure
the U.S. border."

It's about time.