Immigration April 30, 2021

Progress at Border as Number of Children at CBP Facilities Falls 84%

DONNA, TEXAS - MARCH 30: Young children lie inside a pod at the Department of Homeland Security holding facility run by the Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) on March 30, 2021 in Donna, Texas. The Donna location is the main detention center for unaccompanied children coming across the U.S. border in the Rio Grande Valley. The children are housed by the hundreds in eight pods that are about 3,200 square feet in size. Many of the pods had more than 500 children in them. The youngest of the unaccompanied minors are kept separate from the rest of the detainees. The Biden administration has just allowed journalists inside its main detention facility at the border for migrant children. It is an overcrowded tent structure where more than 4,000 kids and families are kept in pods, with the youngest kept in a large play pen with mats on the floor for sleeping. (Photo by Dario Lopez-Mills - Pool/Getty Images)

The number of children held in Custom and Border Patrol facilities – which critics call “jail like” – has dropped precipitously in the last month. CNN reports that there were 954 children in CBP facilities on Wednesday, down from a peak of 5,767 on March 28. That’s a 84% dip.

In recent weeks, the federal government has opened up more than a dozen temporary shelters, which have reduced overcrowding. On Monday, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the Biden administration is essentially starting from scratch.

“The entire system was gutted,” he said during a briefing at the White House. “It takes time to build out of the depths of cruelty that the administration before us established.”

ICYMI: Biden's first 100 days: How U.S. immigration policy has — and hasn't — changed https://t.co/DTIwqgwPEO via @CBSNews
— Camilo Montoya-Galvez (@camiloreports) April 29, 2021

Federal law requires that minors spend no more than 72 hours at CBP facilities, although officials struggled to comply with that target as they dealt with a massive surge of migrants at the border.

Yet, the situation is improving. According to CNN, “the average time that kids are in CBP custody is now 28 hours, compared to 133 hours on March 28, the official said, a nearly 80% reduction in time spent in Border Patrol detention.”

Last week, CNN explained that Biden is also emphasizing family reunification:

The Biden administration is trying to fast-track the process for parents or guardians, many of whom are undocumented, to collect their children while awaiting immigration proceedings and an eventual decision on their status. HHS data shows about 90% of children who have been released went to close relatives, suggesting many have family members in the United States.

On his 100th day in office, CBS News summarized Biden’s immigration policy:

During his first 100 days as president, Mr. Biden halted border wall construction and ended some Trump-era policies, including broad restrictions on green cards. However, Mr. Biden has kept several of his predecessor’s immigration changes, including a historic-low cap on refugees and limits on asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border.