BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AJR 4|
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CONSENT
Bill No: AJR 4
Author: Hueso (D) and V. Manuel Perez (D)
Amended: 4/1/13 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE : 10-0, 4/9/13
AYES: DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso,
Lara, Liu, Pavley, Wyland
NO VOTE RECORDED: Roth
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 3/7/13 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : The United States-Mexico border
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This resolution requests that the federal government
fund infrastructure improvements at the Calexico, Otay Mesa, and
San Ysidro Ports of Entry.
ANALYSIS : There are five California ports of entry between
Mexico and the US: Otay Mesa, San Ysidro, and Tecate in San
Diego County, and Andrade and Calexico in Imperial County.
Tecate and Andrade are much smaller and more remotely located,
while the other three experience high traffic volumes.
Calexico West . Built in 1974, processes an average of more
than 16,000 private vehicles and 20,000 pedestrians per day.
Calexico East, built in 1996 to help ease traffic at Calexico
West, handles commercial operations. Facilities at Calexico
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are inadequate to meet traffic demand and obsolete in terms of
inspector safety and border security. General Services
Administration (GSA) has proposed an expansion project, for
which Congress has appropriated $24 million for site
acquisition and project design; GSA estimates construction
costs at $318 million.
Otay Mesa . Built in 1983, is one of the 10 busiest land ports
in the US, handling an average of more than 16,000 private
vehicles, 2,000 trucks, 100 buses, and 3,000 pedestrians each
day. Congress has appropriated $21.3 million for site
acquisition and design to GSA to reconfigure and modernize
Otay Mesa; GSA estimates construction costs at $161 million.
San Ysidro . Built in the 1970s, is the busiest land border
crossing in the Western Hemisphere, processing an average of
50,000 northbound vehicles and 25,000 northbound pedestrians
each day. A San Diego Association of Governments study
projects an 87% increase in vehicle traffic at this port of
entry by 2030. The US GSA is currently in the first phase of
a reconstruction project to expand San Ysidro's capacity, with
an estimated remaining cost of $285 million.
This resolution requests that the federal government, including
the Department of Homeland Security and the GSA, fund necessary
improvements at the San Ysidro, Calexico, and Otay Mesa Ports of
Entry.
Comments
Border delays impact the economy . According to the San Diego
Association of Governments, Mexico is the US' second largest
trading partner and California's number one export market.
Inadequate infrastructure has resulted in an average wait time
of 70 minutes to cross the US-Mexico border, costing the US and
Mexican economies an estimated $7.2 billion in foregone gross
output and more than 62,000 jobs in 2007. Delays result in lost
productivity, reduced industry competitiveness, and foregone
business income at the regional, state, and national levels.
Funding concerns . Not only has Congress failed to identify full
funding for the three GSA port of entry projects, but
sequestration has now added further uncertainty. In August
2011, President Obama signed the Budget Control Act of 2011,
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which requires across-the-board spending cuts to many federal
programs in order to reduce the federal deficit. Departments
began implementing the cuts on March 1, 2013. Although the
federal government is responsible for maintaining the nation's
borders, budget cuts could further delay the upgrades at San
Ysidro, Otay Mesa, and Calexico.
FISCAL EFFECT : Fiscal Com.: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 4/10/13)
Imperial County Transportation Commission
Otay Mesa Chamber of Commerce
San Ysidro Chamber of Commerce
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office, GSA
has developed expansion projects for the San Ysidro, Calexico,
and Otay Mesa ports of entry to provide adequate operational
space, improve border wait times, and create a safe environment
for employees and visitors. Uncertain federal funding has
delayed project completion. This resolution urges the federal
government to prioritize these projects for funding so that they
can be completed in a timely manner.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 75-0, 3/7/13
AYES: Achadjian, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown,
Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chávez, Chesbro, Conway,
Cooley, Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Donnelly, Eggman, Fong, Fox,
Frazier, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray, Grove,
Hagman, Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Holden, Hueso, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Levine, Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein,
Mansoor, Medina, Melendez, Mitchell, Morrell, Mullin,
Muratsuchi, Nestande, Olsen, Pan, Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel
Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Salas, Skinner, Torres,
Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada,
John A. Pérez
NO VOTE RECORDED: Alejo, Beth Gaines, Nazarian, Stone, Ting
JJA:nd 4/10/13 Senate Floor Analyses
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SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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