Pappas Demands Action on Broken Surveillance Cameras at Southern Border

Following NBC News’s reporting that 30% of the cameras in Border Patrol's main surveillance system are broken, Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01) demanded that U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas immediately address this security lapse to restore real-time border monitoring and ensure border security. 

A recently circulated Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) internal memo indicated that nearly one-third, approximately 150 out of 500, of its Remote Video Surveillance Systems cameras are not functioning.

In the letter, Pappas expressed significant concerns about the delay in addressing CBP’s broken cameras, writing, “If left unresolved, this issue could undermine CBP’s ability to safeguard our borders, impede efforts to interdict fentanyl and other illicit substances, and endanger the safety and security of communities along our borders.”

He continued, “It is unacceptable that such a significant portion of CBP’s surveillance infrastructure is offline, and worse, that the agency is unaware of how long this situation has persisted. These gaps in surveillance create blind spots that could be exploited by terrorists, drug and human traffickers, and other threats to national security.”

Noting Republican leadership’s refusal to allow a vote on the Senate’s bipartisan border security bill that would support CBP personnel, Pappas wrote, “Despite the urgency of the situation at the border, Republican leadership has refused to allow a vote on the Senate’s bipartisan border security bill to address the issues along the southern border, which would provide much needed resources to our border patrol personnel and support their work to restore order and address security.”

Concluding, he demanded action from DHS, “I request a briefing within the next two weeks to discuss CBP’s internal memo, its procedures for monitoring and addressing security gaps, how these lapses are assessed for national security risks, and the agency’s plans and timeline for restoring full camera functionality.”

Read the full letter here. 

Background:

Pappas has been an ardent supporter of bipartisan efforts to address America’s northern and southern border and has called on House Republican leadership to stop blocking the consideration of legislation to restore order and fix the U.S.’s immigration system that has been broken for decades. 

Pappas is a cosponsor of the Dignity Act, which is comprehensive, bipartisan legislation to address security and infrastructure challenges at the border, hire additional border patrol personnel, establish new pathways for asylum seekers, and create a path to citizenship.

In March, Pappas helped launch a new border security task force to focus on the need for comprehensive, bipartisan solutions to address the border and fix the broken immigration system. Later that month, Pappas helped to pass the fiscal year 2024 government funding package, which included a $3.2 billion increase in funding for Customs and Border Patrol (CPB), providing for a record 22,000 agents, including 150 counter-fentanyl officers, and needed investments in fentanyl detection equipment.

In September 2023, Pappas called on House leadership to advance a supplemental appropriations package that expands fentanyl interdiction capacity and improves border security across the country, including along our northern border.