Continuing violence along the Mexican border is causing concern for many U.S. border cities. Residents are worried about increasing crime, draining resources and overcrowding schools.
But when it comes to resources, the focus isn't just on Mexican immigrants.
Last year, the border patrol apprehended more than 1 million illegal aliens. But millions more went undetected.
Violent crime along the border has increased with the spike in human smuggling. The coyotes - as they are known - create a culture of lawlessness, according to Rep. Steve Pearce, R-New Mexico.
“The stakes have become so high for smugglers that they find out who the sheriffs are and who the deputies are and they tell them simply, ‘if you get in our way we're going to kill you first, and then we're going to kill your families,’” Pearce said.
Lawmakers from border states shared other concerns, such as the drain on resources. Southwest border hospitals provided more than $800 million in uncompensated care. Not to mention the overcrowding of jail, courts and schools.
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Immigration impact
U.S. residents along the Mexican border say illegal immigrants are destroying their quality of life.
 
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And the steady flow of OTMs - illegal aliens from countries other than Mexico - raises national security alarms. Unlike illegal Mexicans who are sent back across the border, OTMs are given a court date, which 90 percent of them never show up for.
“The culture is pathetic with the fact that these OTMs, the cultural message is out there that they come across the border looking for the border patrol agents. They don't even run from them anymore,” Rep. Henry Bonilla, R-Texas, said.
Another major worry is the loss of jobs and lowering of wages.
“We have to recognize that we are doing no favors for all of our citizens, all the people who vote for us, all the people who pay taxes, all the people who play by the rules to get here if we do not protect them from simply having their job taken by the next person willing to work for less,” Rep. Darrell Issa, R-California, said.
More lawmakers are tuning into their constituents who have long complained about illegal immigration, but so far real action has been slow in coming.
The Real ID Act, signed into law in May, sets a deadline of 2008 for states to ensure that drivers’ licenses are being issued only to people who are in the country legally. But it's been a slow process. DHS is working with the National Association of Governors and other groups to come up with standards. And nine states have to change their state laws so they explicitly require legal presence as a condition for a drivers’ license.
