Pasco Reporter

May 22, 2024

Washington, DC: U.S. Congressman Gus Bilirakis has joined a group of lawmakers advocating for the Reshape ATF Act in response to concerns over border policies. The legislation mandates full utilization of detention beds, eliminates two federal programs funding social services for undocumented immigrants, and requires electronic monitoring of non-detained individuals using biometric and GPS technology.

“Because of President Biden’s reckless open border policies, there are currently millions of illegal aliens wandering the United States unsupervised. We don’t know who they are or what they’re doing – which has already proven dangerous. While I want to see much more severe action taken to protect our national security by securing the border – such as the measures contained in HR 2, I believe this legislation is an important and reasonable step forward,” said Congressman Bilirakis. “My constituents don’t want to see their tax dollars used to support the needs of illegal aliens as they struggle to make ends meet and they don’t want those who have broken the law to come here being released onto the streets of communities throughout the U.S. without any supervision. More than 1 million illegal aliens in the United States already have final orders for removal. However, since we don’t have a mechanism for tracking them in place, they are evading deportation. Had this proposed law been enacted prior to their release into our country, law enforcement could have immediately located and removed them once the deportation order was issued.”

Rep. Donaldson, primary House Sponsor of the bill, emphasized its urgency: “These people should be held in detention facilities upon entering the United States; however, because Joe Biden has dismantled ICE’s ATD program, they are all-too-often released into our country’s interior and subsequently lost. This is why it’s critical that we utilize biometrics and GPS technology to ensure that law enforcement can pinpoint the exact location of illegal aliens prior to deportation.”