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Abbott Signs 'Historic' Border Security Bill Making Illegal Immigration a State Crime

Leah Barkoukis
Leah Barkoukis  |  December 19, 2023 2:00 PM

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday signed “historic” legislation giving state law enforcement authority to prosecute illegal border crossers.

“Four years ago, the United States had the fewest illegal border crossings in decades,” Abbott said. “It was because of four policies put in place by the Trump Administration that led to such a low number of illegal crossings. President Biden has eliminated all of those policies and done nothing to halt illegal immigration.”

Abbott said Biden’s “deliberate inaction” has left his state to “fend for itself," but in doing so, it is likely kicking off a legal battle with the federal government, which is responsible for immigration enforcement. 

“The goal of Senate Bill 4 is to stop the tidal wave of illegal entry into Texas,” he said during a signing ceremony in Brownsville. “It creates a criminal offense for illegal entry into Texas from a foreign nation for repeat offenders, that creates the events of illegal reentry with a potential prison sentence term of up to 20 years.”

“The bill provides a mechanism to order an illegal immigrant to return to the foreign nation from which they entered,” he added.

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Senate Bill 4 from Special Session #4 (Perry/Spiller) creates a criminal offense for illegal entry into this state from a foreign nation. The law cracks down on repeated attempts to enter Texas by creating the offense of illegal reentry and penalizes offenders with up to 20 years in prison. It also provides the mechanism to order an offender to return to the foreign nation from which the person entered or attempted to enter this state. The law provides civil immunity and indemnification for local and state government officials, employees, and contractors for lawsuits resulting from the enforcement of these provisions. (Governor's Office)

Abbott signed two additional border security bills on Monday as well. 

Senate Bill 4 from Special Session #3 (Flores/Guillen) creates a mandatory ten-year minimum prison sentence for smuggling of persons and continuous smuggling of persons. Passed with bipartisan support, the law enhances the criminal penalties for the operation of a stash house and creates a mandatory five-year minimum prison sentence. It also further enhances criminal penalties for victim-related offenses that occurred during the commission of smuggling, such as assault and burglary.
 
Senate Bill 3 from Special Session #4 (Huffman/Jetton) appropriates $1.54 billion in general revenue to the Trusteed Programs within the Office of the Governor for border security operations and the construction, operation, and maintenance of border barrier infrastructure. (Governor's Office)