WASHINGTON (NewsNation) — Lawmakers are grappling with their own solutions ahead of the expiration of Title 42, as two senators are preparing a plan to keep the core of the pandemic-era health policy in place for another two years.
Arizona Independent Sen. Krysten Sinema and North Carolina Republican Sen. Tom Nillis are sponsoring a bill resembling Title 42 operations, allowing immigration and border authorities to quickly turn away migrants without proper IDs or paperwork.
Yet, there are controversial elements because if it became law, even those who have legitimate claims to asylum could be turned back without being given that chance to make their case.
Tillis said the Biden administration won’t have much of a choice, and it must take action like this to prevent a catastrophic situation at the U.S. southern border.
Sinema said this bill buys the administration more time to come up with a more workable plan to secure the border.
The bill is cosponsored by Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and John Cornyn (R-Texas).
To combat the influx of migrants expected at the border, the Biden administration has also stiffened penalties for illegal entry, including expedited removal, which can carry a five-year reentry ban and even criminal prosecution. They’ve also added migrant processing centers in Latin America starting with Colombia and Guatemala to process migrants there rather than at the U.S. border.
Some of the criticism from the White House is that Republicans refuse to put a plan forward.
That will change next week, as House Republicans are expected to vote on their “Secure Border Act of 2023.” That plan proposes restarting the construction of the border wall.
Meanwhile, Republicans on Capitol Hill say Biden is being too lax on immigration policies.
Title 42 was put into place in March 2020 as a way to turn away migrants at the border seeking asylum in the name of public health concerns. Since then, border agents have denied entry to millions of migrants. It’s set to expire on May 11.