U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Washington, DC 20528
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Update on Southwest Border Security and Preparedness Ahead of Court-
Ordered Lifting of Title 42
Under the Biden-Harris Administration, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been
executing a comprehensive strategy to continue to secure our borders and build a safe, orderly,
and humane immigration process. After inheriting a broken and dismantled immigration system,
since January 2021 DHS has effectively managed an unprecedented number of noncitizens
seeking to enter the United States, interdicted more drugs, and disrupted more smuggling
operations than ever before.
This update reviews the DHS-led whole-of-government framework guiding preparations for and
management of increased encounters of noncitizens at our Southwest Border following the lifting
of the Title 42 public health order, as was outlined in the April 26, 2022 memorandum attached
here. Multiple DHS agencies and offices and interagency partners, including the Departments of
State and Justice, have already been executing plans guided by this framework. That work
includes the largest anti-smuggler campaign in history, innovative approaches that pair increased
access to lawful pathways with consequences for failing to use them, and additional personnel
and processing improvements led by the Southwest Border Coordination Center (SBCC). Thanks
to prudent planning and execution and the talent and unwavering dedication of the DHS
workforce and our partners, we have maintained safe, orderly, and humane processes that are
managing more than twice as many people than they were built for, while ensuring national
security and public safety. We will provide additional updates as work continues to progress.
While we take the necessary steps to manage the border in a safe, orderly, and humane manner,
we do so within the constraints of a decades-old immigration system that everyone agrees is
broken. More can be done to reduce the inevitable strain an increased number of border
encounters will put on the immigration system at federal, state, and local levels if Congress
would pass the comprehensive immigration reform legislation President Biden proposed the day
he took office. Until and unless Congress updates our outdated statutes and helps us create a fair,
fast, and functioning asylum system, we will continue to face challenges on our Southwest
Border. Given this, notwithstanding the efforts described herein, a significant increase will
substantially strain our system even further. Addressing this challenge will take time and
additional resources, as well as the partnership of Congress, state and local officials, NGOs, and
communities to do so.
Title 42 or Not, Individuals without a Legal Basis to Remain Will Be Subject to Removal
In March 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) invoked a section of Title
42 of the U.S. Code—a law addressing public health, not immigration—to issue an order that
