6 U.S.C. § 223 Border Security Metrics

• Library: United States Statutes
• Edition: 2023 Edition
• Currency: Current through P.L. 118-19 (published on www.congress.gov on 10/06/2023)

(a) Definitions

In this section:

(1) Appropriate congressional committees

The term "appropriate congressional committees" means-

(A) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and

(B) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives.

(2) Consequence Delivery System

The term "Consequence Delivery System" means the series of consequences applied by U.S. Border Patrol in collaboration with other Federal agencies to persons unlawfully entering the United States, in order to prevent unlawful border crossing recidivism.

(3) Got away

The term "got away" means an unlawful border crosser who-

(A) is directly or indirectly observed making an unlawful entry into the United States;

(B) is not apprehended; and

(C) is not a turn back.

(4) Known maritime migrant flow

The term "known maritime migrant flow" means the sum of the number of undocumented migrants-

(A) interdicted in the waters over which the United States has jurisdiction;

(B) identified at sea either directly or indirectly, but not interdicted;

(C) if not described in subparagraph (A) or (B), who were otherwise reported, with a significant degree of certainty, as having entered, or attempted to enter, the United States through the maritime border.

(5) Major violator

The term "major violator" means a person or entity that has engaged in serious criminal activities at any land, air, or sea port of entry, including the following:

(A) Possession of illicit drugs.

(B) Smuggling of prohibited products.

(C) Human smuggling.

(D) Possession of illegal weapons.

(E) Use of fraudulent documents.

(F) Any other offense that is serious enough to result in an arrest.

(6) Secretary

The term "the Secretary" means the Secretary of Homeland Security.

(7) Situational awareness

The term "situational awareness" means knowledge and understanding of current unlawful cross-border activity, including the following:

(A) Threats and trends concerning illicit trafficking and unlawful crossings.

(B) The ability to forecast future shifts in such threats and trends.

(C) The ability to evaluate such threats and trends at a level sufficient to create actionable plans.

(D) The operational capability to conduct persistent and integrated surveillance of the international borders of the United States.

(8) Transit zone

The term "transit zone" means the sea corridors of the western Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and the eastern Pacific Ocean through which undocumented migrants and illicit drugs transit, either directly or indirectly, to the United States.

(9) Turn back

The term "turn back" means an unlawful border crosser who, after making an unlawful entry into the United States, responds to United States enforcement efforts by returning promptly to the country from which such crosser entered.

(10) Unlawful border crossing effectiveness rate

The term "unlawful border crossing effectiveness rate" means the percentage that results from dividing the number of apprehensions and turn backs by the sum of the number of apprehensions, estimated undetected unlawful entries, turn backs, and got aways.

(11) Unlawful entry

The term "unlawful entry" means an unlawful border crosser who enters the United States and is not apprehended by a border security component of the Department of Homeland Security.

(b) Metrics for securing the border between ports of entry

(1) In general

Not later than 180 days after December 23, 2016, the Secretary shall develop metrics, informed by situational awareness, to measure the effectiveness of security between ports of entry. The Secretary shall annually implement the metrics developed under this subsection, which shall include the following:

(A) Estimates, using alternative methodologies where appropriate, including recidivism data, survey data, known-flow data, and technologically-measured data, of the following: