Congressman Rick Larsen's Online Office

The new presidential administration means a fresh start on federal policy for our common border with Canada. Here in Whatcom County and in Washington, D.C., we look forward to the opportunity to make our border more efficient for commerce and travel and more secure for our community and our country.

First, let us consider the need for security: we all know that the only known Al Qaida operative ever apprehended at a U.S. border crossing was caught here in Northwest Washington. Terrorists are not the only threat we face. Federal, state and local law enforcement personnel provide a layered defense to stop not only terrorists, but drug smuggling and illegal immigration as well. Every year, Customs and Border Protection seizes approximately 40,000 pounds of illegal drugs on our 4,000-mile northern border.

Efficiency is also critical: Canada is the United States' largest trading partner. In 2008, over $596 billion in commerce crossed our common border with Canada, an increase of 51 percent since 2002. Millions of American jobs depend on the quick and efficient transport of goods and passengers across our Northern border.

When it comes to our border with Canada, the Obama administration is off to a good start. During her first week on the job, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano ordered a review of security measures on our shared border with Canada, requesting input from Customs and Border Protection, the Coast Guard and other agencies. I thank Secretary Napolitano for her leadership in ordering this review and I direct her attention to several important issues to Whatcom County, our region and our country:

• Preparing for the 2010 Olympics and the 2009 Police and Fire Games in Vancouver, B.C. The Olympics and Police and Fire Games will bring significant security challenges as well as economic opportunities to Washington state. We must ensure that the Department of Homeland Security provides enough personnel and resources at the border to keep our citizens safe and maximize the economic benefit of the games. We must also get an emergency coordination center up and running to coordinate the security efforts of over 40 federal, state and local agencies and conduct training exercises for first responders.
  
• Improving the NEXUS program. The NEXUS program, designed to allow pre-screened, low-risk travelers to cross our common border with Canada more efficiently, helps many of us save time during frequent border crossings. Yet the program has many flaws including a rigid "zero-tolerance" policy for NEXUS card applicants and the absence of an appeals process. I have called on Congress to hold hearings on the NEXUS program and I look forward to working with Secretary Napolitano to implement needed improvements.
  
• Ensuring the timely completion of the Peace Arch border facility. The new Peace Arch facility will dramatically improve efficiency and provide Customs and Border Protection with a more secure facility. We must continue to work with CBP to ensure that 10 booths and the staff needed to run them are in place and ready to go for the 2010 Olympics.
  
• Extending hours at the Lynden-Aldergrove border crossing. Twenty-four-hour access will make travel to and from Canada more convenient for many travelers in Northwest Washington and relieve congestion at the Blaine border crossings.
  
• Supporting interagency narcotics interdiction in the Interstate 5 corridor and San Juan Islands. Northwest Washington continues to be a corridor for the smuggling of illegal narcotics and the ingredients to make methamphetamine. More resources are needed to crack down on trafficking and protect our communities.
  
•  Supporting ongoing federal-local coordination in border communities. In Whatcom County, federal agencies utilize an innovative dispatch system to support local law enforcement. This highly successful model should be supported and could be replicated elsewhere.
  
• Working with Canada to ensure American first responders have access to needed radio frequencies. The Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Homeland Security need to work together - hand in hand with their Canadian counterparts - to ensure that radio frequencies are available for first responders in our border communities, and that these frequencies are protected from unnecessary interference.

The new presidential administration presents an opportunity to move forward on these critical issues. I know that the Obama administration will find dedicated partners in our local leaders and federal, state and local law enforcement personnel who protect our borders to keep us safe. I look forward to working with all of them to keep our common border with Canada secure and efficient.

U.S. Representative Rick Larsen represents Washington's 2nd District which includes Whatcom County. He is co-chair of the Governor's 2010 Olympics Task Force and a member of the Northern Border Caucus.