The Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, bill H.R. 815, was struck down with a 49-50 vote in the senate on Feb. 7. It is currently undergoing review with a series of proposed amendments.
The bill addressed several issues, from financial reimbursement for veterans after emergency treatments to foreign aid policy regarding Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan. More controversially, it sought to address the current migrant crisis on the southern border of the country, which has been a source of contention between the state and federal governments for some time now. The bill was a result of months of negotiations between members of both parties and was heavily promoted by the Biden Administration, with President Joe Biden releasing a statement on Jan. 26 calling it “the toughest and fairest set of reforms to secure the border we’ve ever had in our country.”
Intending to reduce the number of incoming migrants at the border and stabilize the number of people currently in the immigration process, the act would have severely restricted the country’s asylum-seeking system. Contrary to generalized statements, it would not give the president the authority to “shut down” the border. It would allow for migrants encountered at the border to be deported without a chance to apply for asylum.
This emergency authority would become available should the average number of registered border crossings rise above 5,000 daily per seven-day week or above 8,500 in one day. This policy applies only to adults encountered in between ports of entry. Asylum-seeking would still be allowed by appointment at a port of entry and for unaccompanied minors, regardless of where they entered the country.
The initial standard for seeking asylum would also be raised under this new bill, with migrants having to demonstrate a reasonable possibility of harm to immigration officers should they be deported back to their home countries. Currently, they are asked to demonstrate a significant possibility only. What is considered a reasonable possibility is left to the discretion of the immigration officer conducting the interview. Those who pass the initial screening will become immediately eligible for a work permit, contrary to the current stipulation that they must stay 180 days in the US before becoming eligible. If they do not pass the initial screening, people have 72 hours to appeal the decision to an asylum review board. If this appeal is shut down, they will be ordered out of the country.
The bill required 60 votes to pass in the senate, and despite being the most conservative border policy accepted by Democrats in recent years and its original Republican backing, almost every Republican senator voted against it. This followed a call by Donald Trump for Republicans to kill the bill. Senators James Lankford, Susan Collins and Mitt Romney were the exceptions. Five Democrats, including majority leaders Chuck Schumer and Elizabeth Warren, also voted against the bill.
After an approved motion by Schumer to reconsider the vote, the bill is now being reworked to move forward primarily as a stand-alone foreign aid package, dismissing the border policies for now.
