Being the only port of entry in Arizona accepting CBPOne App appointments, Senators stress need to ensure regular trade and travel are not interrupted
NOGALES – Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema – Chair of the Border Management Subcommittee – and Ranking Member James Lankford (R-Okla.) toured the Dennis DeConcini Port of Entry to review new at-port operations and procedures following the end of Title 42. The DeConcini Port of Entry is the only Land Port of Entry in Arizona accepting CBPOne App appointments.
“With the renewal of processing at ports of entry, we must ensure that Officers have the resources needed to do their jobs – keeping Arizona families safe, securing our border, and ensuring migrants are treated fairly and humanely,” said Sinema, Chair of the Border Management Subcommittee.
The tour of the Port was led by Tucson Field Office Director of Field Operations Lupe Ramirez, and Port of Nogales Port Director Michael Humphries.
Located in Nogales, the DeConcini Port of Entry was built in 1966 and last updated in 1994. The Nogales Area Ports are the busiest land ports in Arizona, facilitating trade and travel that fuels Arizona’s economy. The Port is an essential component of commercial trade as well as pedestrian and passenger vehicle traffic for the region. In 2022, Sinema secured $500,000 in appropriations funding to develop a plan to modernize the Port to improve border security and efficiency of cross-border travel and trade.
Mexico is Arizona’s main trading partner and the largest market for exports of Arizona-made goods. In 2022, Arizona’s bilateral trade with Mexico was over $19 billion, and almost one-third of all Arizona exports are destined for Mexican markets.
Sinema and Lankford’s trip to Nogales is the latest in a series of visits to the border. In January, Sinema led the largest bipartisan delegation in recent memory of U.S. Senators to the Southwest border in El Paso, Texas, and Yuma, Arizona, to see firsthand the ongoing humanitarian and security crisis that Arizona border communities experience every day. Last month, Sinema led a Congressional delegation to the Southwest border near Naco to continue focusing on lasting bipartisan solutions to the border crisis and the ongoing security and humanitarian crisis impacting Arizona communities.
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