New Border Fence Planned For Arizona

Arizona is hoping to start building a new border fence despite the fact that it has only raised a small percentage of the money needed to complete construction.

The Joint Border Security Advisory Committee in Arizona has raised about 10% of the $2.8 million required to complete the 200 mile border fence. The Committee believes that private donations will pick up once construction on the new border fence is started.

State Sen. Steve Smith, R-Maricopa, said that construction could start by the end of this year.

Smith said:

“(The Committee is) looking to get the first mile started.”

The CS Monitor reports that the Joint Border Security Advisory Committee was created in 2010 to make recommendations about border security. The committee has not made a recommendation since it began meeting in March of 2011. It has, however, made the fence project its top priority.

Co-chairman Rep. Russ Jones, R-Yuma, said:

“I don’t think we have enough info to make a recommendation…. There’s so much technology that’s important given the challenging terrain.”

AZ Central reports that the Committee has also failed to meet the state requirement that it file a monthly status report. Jones said that the committee hasn’t been making reports because there hasn’t really been anything to say.

Jones said:

“Reporting once a month becomes cumbersome. We don’t have enough new information to go through the bureaucracy.”

Private donors have already given $273,000 for a new border fence. The committee will need about $2.6 million more to complete its project.

Do you think Arizona needs a new border fence?