United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee 5 R cosponsors

S 481 — Securing our Border Act

Last action — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 06, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Stalled 24% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 5 sponsors

    1 primary, 4 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (5 R).

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

Securing our Border ActThis bill addresses issues concerning border security and immigration, including by transferring unobligated funds from the Internal Revenue Service to certain border-related projects.Specifically, the bill transfers certain unobligated funds previously appropriated for tax enforcement activities (e.g., collecting owed taxes and conducting criminal investigations) to fund (1) nonintrusive inspection systems along the northern border and southwest border of the United States, and (2) the construction of a border wall system along the southwest border.The bill also authorizes the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to pay recruitment, retention, and relocation bonuses, subject to various requirements and limitations. For example, a relocation bonus may not exceed 15% of the agent's annual basic bay and must be conditioned on the agent agreeing to serve for at least three years at the new duty station.The bill also modifies the treatment of non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) arriving by land from a country next to the United States. Specifically, if such an individual is not clearly entitled to admission into the United States, the Department of Justice must (1) return the individual to that neighboring country or a safe third country while removal proceedings are pending, or (2) detain the individual while the individual's asylum application is under consideration. (Current law authorizes DOJ to return the individual to the neighboring country but does not require such action or detention.)

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

3 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill amends the procedures for treating aliens arriving from contiguous territories by mandating their return or detention for asylum consideration rather than allowing discretionary return.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(2)(C)

    may return → shall--

    The requirement for immigration officers to return aliens or detain them is made mandatory instead of discretionary.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(2)(C)

    return the alien to such territory, or to a safe third country (as described in section 208), pending the completion of a proceeding under section 240; or → return the alien to such territory, or to a safe third country (as described in section 208), pending the completion of a proceeding under section 240; or

    The amended law clarifies the conditions under which aliens can be returned or detained.

  • 8 U.S.C. 1225(b)(2)(C)

    detain the alien for further consideration of an application for asylum, which shall include a determination of credible fear of persecution.

    Aliens are now explicitly subject to detention for asylum application consideration, including credible fear assessments.

Action History

  1. Introduced in Senate

  2. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 4 co-sponsors · 542 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (4)

Not signed on (542)

542 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 542 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

public-safety immigration
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 481 do?
Securing our Border ActThis bill addresses issues concerning border security and immigration, including by transferring unobligated funds from the Internal Revenue Service to certain border-related projects.Specifically, the bill transfers certain unobligated funds previously appropriated for tax enforcement activities (e.g., collecting owed taxes and conducting criminal investigations) to fund (1) nonintrusive inspection systems along the northern border and southwest border of the United States, and (2) the construction of a border wall system along the southwest border.The bill also authorizes the U.S. Customs and Border Protection to pay recruitment, retention, and relocation bonuses, subject to various requirements and limitations. For example, a relocation bonus may not exceed 15% of the agent's annual basic bay and must be conditioned on the agent agreeing to serve for at least three years at the new duty station.The bill also modifies the treatment of non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) arriving by land from a country next to the United States. Specifically, if such an individual is not clearly entitled to admission into the United States, the Department of Justice must (1) return the individual to that neighboring country or a safe third country while removal proceedings are pending, or (2) detain the individual while the individual's asylum application is under consideration. (Current law authorizes DOJ to return the individual to the neighboring country but does not require such action or detention.)
Who sponsors S 481?
S 481 is sponsored by Scott, Tim (Republican), Cassidy, Bill (Republican), Rounds, Mike (Republican), Daines, Steve (Republican), and Lankford, James (Republican).
What is the current status of S 481?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced February 06, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 481?
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