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President Bush's call Monday night for beefed-up border security put the National Guard in the spotlight, but Homeland Security Department officials said their workload will be boosted as well.

Various elements of DHS will work with the Defense Department to maintain the U.S.-Mexico divide, officials said Tuesday, as details about the president's border control initiative emerged.

DHS will be charged with expanding U.S.-run centers for detaining illegal immigrants to fill 4,000 more beds by the end of fiscal 2006, said Julie Myers, assistant secretary of the department's Immigration and Customs Enforcement bureau. She added that officials might have to "use them more creatively" to handle the influx of detainees.

Some of the extra beds will be added at existing facilities, where contracts are already in place, meaning those contracts could be expanded. However, new facilities may be constructed in order to handle the detainee population.

The call for expanded detention centers comes as part of Bush's move to end the "catch and release" method of controlling illegal immigration, where apprehended illegal immigrants are released rather than detained, and expected to return for deportation hearings. In his televised address, Bush said the majority of those released never arrive for their day in court. He also is seeking an expedited legal process to cut the time of the average deportation process.

Myers said ICE agents will become more aggressive in targeting those who employ illegal immigrants. Many such employers also are involved in other criminal conspiracies, she said.

"Simple administrative sanctions are not enough," she said. "We find that in many instances employers that hire illegals as part of their business model really exploit them. And they may engage in money laundering."

The Customs and Border Protection bureau will see its workload grow as well. CBP chief David Aguilar said the agency will train thousands more agents at its academies than it previously did.

"As a part of the funding that we're looking at, we are getting money to basically build on to our academy," he said, "so the capacity we're looking to build over the next two-and-a-half years will be such [that] it will accommodate our growth" by 9,000 agents - which would double CBP's ranks to 18,000 in 2008.

DHS officials, while backing Bush's plan, said they were not briefed on the costs surrounding some aspects. DHS spokesman Jarrod Agen said exact costs have not yet been calculated, and the department's budget office is preparing those figures. Most agencies could not detail how many new workers would be needed.

DHS and other departments receiving backup from the National Guard will eventually have to reimburse the military, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense Paul McHale said. However, he added, specifics are not yet finalized.

"We're trying to come up with cost estimates now," he said. "We don't know."

McHale said contracting opportunities will arise from Monday's announcement.

"DoD and DHS will use civilian contractors when appropriate," he said.

Whatever the cost of a more secure U.S. border, it is expected that all of the money spent by Defense will be returned to it, McHale said. Bush's plan calls for 6,000 National Guardsmen to be sent to the U.S.-Mexico border beginning next month.

DHS officials also could not say which department would be charged with the task of implementing the worker identification program urged by the president. Bush called for a biometric identification card to better arm employers and authorities against document fraud, but DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff did not say whether his department will lead that initiative.

COMMENTS

• Gentlemen: I am an Immigration Enforcement Agent, and as such, have dealt with legacy customs agents and deportation officers in different situations. Legacy customs agents must not belittle themselves while performing immigration-related work. I am not here to criticize anybody, but customs agents have no right to criticize or demean deportation officers, especially when a simple form cannot be completed accurately. That tells a lot about their quality of work. Deportation officers’ work involves a lot more than just deporting aliens. I challenge any customs agent to ride along with a deportation officer, to see how long he/she will last. Not long!!!!! Be it customs enforcement or immigration enforcement, both enforce the law in their unique ways. One does not involve less enforcement than the other. Customs is a criminal process and immigration is administrative, and both are in the business of "enforcing" the law. That one could me more dangerous than the other -- that's really debatable. In summary, I personally, even though I am more than qualified, don’t want to become a customs special agent, (there is nothing special about being one). My goal is to become a deportation officer, where I can use my talent and skills, and execute a warrantless arrest! And I know about a lot of immigration personnel who prefer to stay in immigration, rather than to jump ship into ICE OI. GovExec.com reader Posted September 8, 2006 10:59 PM
• From the correspondence here, it looks like we aren't getting our money's worth out of DHS. Time to look at the wheel again. Phil Posted June 30, 2006 4:09 AM
• If I am "outgunned," it is in an ability to throw insults, not in a battle of wits. Contrary to garbage that has been thrown around by some about the job of a Customs 1811, the vast majority of Customs cases were self-generated. Although it's a shock, we don't have inspectors with us when we conduct a Title III, put a tracker on a car, conduct surveillance, do money pick-ups, or serve warrants. In the OIG's report recommending the merger of ICE and CBP, taking statistics from the last several years, it was determined that less than 30 percent of cases worked by Customs 1811's were originated from seizures made by inspectors. I guess that leaves more than 70 percent of cases that were generated elsewhere. The upgrade from the GS-12 to GS-13 journeyman level was based on an OPM assessment that the level of cases worked Customs-wide warranted this grade increase. This is indeed relevant, and it has nothing to do with how much money we make after LEAP or overtime. We have heard a ton of rambling from many legacy Customs employees since the creation of ICE, many times inappropriate. I disagree with those who take it to a personal level and dole out insults, but I disagree just as much with those non-Customs employees who expect us to shut up and accept any load of crap that gets piled on our plate. I also have to disagree with the notion that any attack on ICE by a legacy Customs employee is a direct attack on legacy INS employees. The truth is that most who did not work for Customs have no frame of reference with which to understand our point of view. That's fine, but don't question our attitude when you didn't experience the same transition. People like me are looking for a positive change. We're not taking pleasure in ruin and the disappointment of others (as per your last post). Many assume that any legacy Customs employee who has a problem with the ICE transition has also abstained from doing his or her job. Under what rule is it assumed that it is impossible for someone to be a productive employee while also having issues with an agency situation? For an unexplained reason, some believe that these two conditions simply cannot co-exist. I must have missed the memo on that one, as I actually worked my most trying case and experienced some of my most active months (case hour-wise) After the ICE transition. GovExec.com reader Posted June 24, 2006 2:42 PM