Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Coast Guard Port Security topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Coast Guard tells House committee it is prioritizing port enforcement as land borders tighten
Summary
At a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing, a Coast Guard official said the service can shift missions as needed and that the commandant has made border sustainment a priority; the official reported roughly 348 migrant interdictions since January and over 1,000 tons of drugs seized from the water.
At a hearing of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, a Coast Guard official told lawmakers that the service is preparing for possible diversion of smuggling to East and West Coast ports as land borders are tightened.
A committee member asked about the Coast Guard’s role if traffickers shift routes as land borders become more secure, saying, “as our southern borders become increasingly locked down, what actions is the coast guard taking to ensure that that our East and West Coast ports eventually are equipped for for any diverted illegal activity and what specific support would you need to continue to carry out your responsibility responsibility to countering illicit smuggling, human trafficking, and and drug interdiction?”
The Coast Guard official replied that the service has broad authorities and the capacity to shift among missions. “When when Congress built the Coast Guard, they they they provided us with a lot of authorities, a lot of broad authorities. It doesn't make us, do only 1 mission at a time. We can quickly switch between search and rescue, alien migration, fisheries, border control, and we're doing that right now,” the official said.
The official reported operational results since January, saying the service had “taken and, and interdicted almost, 3 48 aliens” and had “taken over a thousand, tons of, drugs off the water.” The official also said Acting Commandant Admiral Lunde “has asked us to make border sustainment a priority” while maintaining other missions.
The exchange focused on operational capacity and priorities rather than on specific requests for new appropriations or policy changes. The Coast Guard official described the service’s existing authorities as enabling quick shifts among missions but did not detail particular new assets, funding requests, or timelines for expanded port operations.
No formal votes or committee actions were recorded in the transcript excerpt. The official’s statements indicate a leadership direction (border sustainment priority) but no committee direction, staff assignment, or formal decision was recorded in the provided transcript.
