ASHINGTON, Jan. 11 — The White House Office of Homeland
Security has set off a storm inside the Bush administration with a
broad proposal to create an agency that would consolidate border
security efforts now spread across the federal government.
According to a "border security white paper" produced late last
month by aides to Tom Ridge, the director of homeland security, such
an agency would be called a federal border administration. It would
take control of the Coast Guard, the Customs Service, the border
enforcement functions of the Immigration and Naturalization Service
and the Department of Agriculture's agricultural quarantine
inspection program.
"Our borders today are porous and highly vulnerable to
penetration by foreign terrorists," says the paper proposing the
government overhaul. It goes on to note that almost a dozen federal
agencies now bear responsibility for controlling the borders.
"All of these agencies have other missions besides border
security, so none has security as its core institutional purpose,"
the paper says, recommending a "single accountable agency."
The proposal has sparked a fierce debate inside the Bush
administration and drawn resistance from an array of cabinet
agencies, causing Mr. Ridge to back off from an initial effort to
get the agency consolidation into the president's new budget,
officials said.
Susan Neely, a spokeswoman for Mr. Ridge, the former governor of
Pennsylvania, said: "The governor is on record indicating that where
there are more effective and efficient ways to secure our borders,
it's something that we would be looking at. We are definitely
reviewing all the options."
But she said there was "consensus" that the White House needed
more time to consider various ideas. Several officials said the
proposal was still under consideration and could be submitted to
Congress this year.
An administration official opposed to the plan, who spoke on
condition of anonymity, said: "Ridge tried to push the plan through.
A group of cabinet agencies objected." The official said the
opponents represented a wide range of agencies, including the state,
treasury, agriculture, justice and defense departments.
An array of similar proposals have been made in the past to
reorganize border security. More than 1.3 million people, 340,000
vehicles and 58,000 shipments are estimated to come into the United
States each day. But the efforts died because of inertia or
bureaucratic resistance.
Officials said that Mr. Ridge began pushing the overhaul late
last month.
The white paper produced by his staff argues that a consolidated
agency would produce more unity and could mobilize rapidly.
"The record of coordination and cooperation among the separate
agencies with border security responsibilities has been problematic
for years and remains mixed," the paper says.
But officials from a wide spectrum of cabinet agencies argued
that the change would be too disruptive.
At the Customs Service, which is a part of the Treasury
Department, reports of the proposal have circulated for weeks.
Officials there are quick to point out that the agency was
established in 1789 by the fifth act of the first Congress.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service falls under the
purview of the Justice Department. "Since Sept. 11 we have had very
strong cooperation among border agencies and law enforcement
generally," said Susan Dryden, a spokeswoman for the Justice
Department, "and we have found that working closely together in this
shared responsibility is proving very effective."
In November, Attorney General John Ashcroft announced an overhaul
of the immigration agency that would split into separate bureaus the
agency's law enforcement operations and its services for immigrants.
The change was prompted by concerns that the agency was badly
equipped to fight terrorism.
Under the Ridge proposal, the border enforcement work of the
Immigration and Naturalization Service, including the border patrol,
would be moved into the new federal border administration.
The reorganization also has proponents. Representative William M.
Thornberry, Republican of Texas, has introduced similar legislation.
Under his plan the Federal Emergency Management Agency would be
brought under the same roof as the Coast Guard, Customs Service and
Border Patrol.
"These agencies are a key part of homeland security," Mr.
Thornberry said. "I'm hopeful that the president will at least move
in this direction in the new budget."
Ivo H. Daalder of the Brookings Institution who served at the
National Security Council under President Bill Clinton, said, "It's
good to have the different functions in different departments
consolidated in a single agency." He added, "The real question is
whether it's the right time to reorganize as you're still thinking
about the larger picture."
