State and local officials met with members of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee in Phoenix on Monday for a field hearing on border security. The discussion surrounded how illicit substances like heroin were entering the country and what can be done about it.
Leaders with the Arizona Department of Public Safety and U.S. Customs and Border Protection joined Governor Doug Ducey in the hearing’s first panel.
Panelists agreed while drug seizures and arrests along the border have increased in recent years, more cooperation is needed from the federal government to stop the flow of heroin and other drugs into the country.
CBP commissioner Gil Kerlikowske said his agency needs more investment in technology.
"We have a lot of boots on the ground but the technology is truly the game changer in all of this," said Kerlikowske. "Whether it’s our unmanned aircraft. Whether it’s replacing our non intrusive inspection devices."
Ducey spoke about the state’s two-month-old Border Strike Force. After the hearing he said he’d bring a proposal to the state legislature asking for tens of millions of dollars for the multi-agency unit.
"More assets for our arsenal. That’s what we need to get this job done," said Ducey. "Arizona must hold the line for the sake of every state, every community, and every family in this country. And we intend to do so."
The state partnership with local and federal agencies has been opposed by civil rights groups like the ACLU. They say the effort is misguided and more attention should be focused on drug abuse treatment and prevention.
