Report: Shifting Realities at the U.S.-Mexico Border: Immigration Enforcement and Control in a Fast-Evolving Landscape,

A new Migration Policy Institute report out today calls for major reforms and investments — including for immigration functions not always understood to be part of the border enforcement system — to address unprecedented migration challenges at the U.S.-Mexico border. The report, Shifting Realities at the U.S.-Mexico Border: Immigration Enforcement and Control in a Fast-Evolving Landscape, offers recommendations to create a more effective, durable system of border control. Among them, the U.S. government should:

1. Establish multi-agency border processing centers, where federal agencies and NGO partners would operate, streamlining migrant screening and referrals and creating surge capacity to respond to spikes in arrivals.
2. Create a federal mechanism to redirect migrants without U.S. ties to interior destinations that have available services and capacity, akin to what already occurs with refugee admissions. 
3. Implement asylum system reforms to ensure timely and fair decisions, and adequately fund essential agencies. B
4. Further strengthen engagement and cooperation with Mexico on migration management. 
5. Develop robust refugee processing and resettlement programs within the Western Hemisphere.

KJ