Bill aims to strengthen Northern Border

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10)-- New York members of Congress from both sides of the aisle support the Northern Border Security Enhancement and Review Act.

According to Democratic Senator, Kirsten Gillibrand, migrant encounters at the U.S.-Canadian Border have roughly doubled over the last year.

"Officials reported over 190,000 encounters in 2023 and apprehensions of migrants crossing illegally from Canada jumped 241% from 2022-2023," said Gillibrand during an online press conference. "Its tragic. There’s a human smuggling industry flourishing along our Northern Border. "

The senator said it’s suspected that many of the smugglers are connected to the Mexican Cartel and U.S. based organized crime.

The new federal bill was introduced in the House by Republican Representative, Nick Langworthy, who said everyone needs to be involved in border security.  

"It would also guarantee that Congress is briefed on the security situation at the Northern Border, and provide transparency, and enabling informed decision making so that we can have a broader defense of our border," explained Langworthy.

The bill would require the Department of Homeland Security to update its Northern Border strategy— something Gillibrand said hasn’t been done since 2018.