Republican Lawmakers Express Concern Over Increase in Arrests at Northern Border

U.S. federal agents along the Canadian border are on pace to arrest more than 14,000 illegal immigrants in fiscal year 2024, exceeding the previous record of 10,000 set in the previous year.

Over the first five months of fiscal year 2024, Border Patrol agents have detained 6,039 individuals at the northern Border. The total for fiscal year 2023 was 10,021. Republican lawmakers are particularly concerned about this record pace occurring during sub-zero temperatures, leading them to question what the numbers will be like once the temperatures rise.

Representatives Mike Kelly, R-Pa., and Ryan Zinke, R-Mt., who are co-chairs of the Northern Border Security Caucus, recently issued a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas expressing their “serious concern” over the “unprecedented surge” along the Canadian Border.

Border agents are currently tracking record numbers of illegal immigrants at the northern border in fiscal year 2024, according to the letter. These statistics highlight the severity of the border crisis and the lawmakers argue that every state has effectively become a border state due to the lack of action on the part of the Biden administration.

The Border Patrol monitors eight regions along the Canadian border, with the Swanton sector, which includes New Hampshire, Vermont, and part of upstate New York, experiencing the largest increase in arrests in fiscal year 2024. More than 4,000 of the 6,000-plus arrests have occurred in this sector alone, doubling the number from the previous fiscal year.

In addition, CBP data shows that 1,316 pounds of fentanyl have been intercepted on the northern border in fiscal year 2024, enough to potentially cause harm to over 270 million people, as reported by the Washington Examiner.

The lawmakers emphasized the need to prevent the influx of dangerous illegal drugs into the country and communities, especially given the challenges faced at the southwest border.