Border Security Council Report - Office of the Governor - Rick Perry

Recommendation:
The availability of drugs smuggled into the U.S. from or through Mexico as measured by the street
cost and purity should be a secondary performance measure, but not a primary measure because of
non-related variables that can impact supply.
Discussion:
Texas has become the nation’s transshipment center for illegal aliens and drugs. The disruption of
organized smuggling operations through enhanced security operations at the border should impact
the U.S. drug supply until other smuggling routes with less risk can be established.
The U.S. drug supply can be measured by drug cost and purity. Unlike illegal aliens, drugs can be
very well concealed in the northbound truck and other vehicle traffic that enters the U.S. legally.
As security increases between the ports of entry, the amount of drugs going through the ports of
entry will likely increase, as will efforts by the crime cartels to corrupt inspectors at the ports of
entry. In addition, during periods of increased patrol presence, the United States Postal Service (USPS)
and other couriers see an increase in contraband being sent through their services. To counter this
trend, the USPS is coordinating with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to report such
incidents.
B. Reporting Requirements
Recommendation:
Agencies participating in Operation Border Star must report daily border-related incidents to the Joint
Operations Intelligence Center (JOIC) in their sector. The Border Security Operations Center (BSOC)
should continue to centralize all border incidents and produce daily, weekly, and monthly reports and
track drug and bulk cash seizures and referrals of illegal aliens to federal officials.
Discussion:
Regular reports to the regional JOICs facilitate coordination among law enforcement agencies by
developing a shared understanding of the threat environment they are facing. The JOICs should
serve as the all-source information component in each of the security sectors producing tactical
intelligence that supports border security operations. The BSOC should serve as the all-source
information component for statewide smuggling activities and produce both tactical and strategic
intelligence to support border-wide operations and decision making including the rapid redeployment
of resources.
The State should establish a crime mapping capability that includes near real-time all crime data in
the Operation Border Star counties and access to Customs and Border Protection arrest and seizure
data. This enables law enforcement users to better identify links, patterns, and trends among crimes
in their jurisdictions.
Section Five: Recommendations 11