Border Security Supplemental Passes House

UPDATE: Price’s bill was passed by the House on a voice vote.

Rep. David Price (D-N.C.) introduced a $600 million measure this morning that would send 1,700 more Customs and Border Patrol agents and officers to the U.S./Mexico border.

Price’s legislation is an exact copy of a bill introduced by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) that was passed by the Senate late last week. The cost of the bill is offset by an increase on visa application fees paid by companies that employ 50 or more non-immigrant, skilled foreign employees.

House Republicans, however, are objecting to the bill, saying that it won’t go into effect this year and will not solve the problem of illegal immigration or violence near the southwest border. Republicans are also concerned that the bill’s passage would give Democrats a powerful bargaining chip to use in their quest for comprehensive immigration reform.

The House passed an original version of the bill totaling $701 million in late July. The Senate passed its slimmer version last Thursday. However, due to rules which state that revenue-raising legislation must originate in the House, the Senate will have to pass the latest House version when it reconvenes in September.