Efforts are being made to combat the suffering of migrants by the Border Patrol.

U.S. Border Patrol's Missing Migrant Program helps rescue migrants in distress, prevent migrant deaths, and recover human remains along the southwest border.

Border Patrol must submit annual reports to Congress on this issue, including data on migrant rescues and deaths. In April 2022, we found that Border Patrol hadn't collected, recorded, or reported to Congress complete data on migrant deaths.

As of March 2024, the agency has implemented 2 of our 3 related recommendations and made some progress on the third. That one was about discussing data limitations in Border Patrol reports to help Congress and the public better understand the data.

What GAO Found

Border Patrol established the Missing Migrant Program in 2017 to help rescue migrants in distress and reduce migrant deaths along the southwest border. Through this program, Border Patrol coordinates with external entities (e.g., state and local officials) to assist migrants in distress and to recover and identify remains.

Border Patrol sector agents are responsible for collecting and recording data on migrant deaths. In April 2022, GAO reported that Border Patrol had not collected and recorded, or reported to Congress, complete data on migrant deaths. Specifically, GAO reported that while Border Patrol has a policy for recording information on migrant deaths in the agency's system of record, Border Patrol sectors had not entered all available information on migrant deaths into the system consistent with that policy. In particular, GAO found that Border Patrol was not recording all migrant deaths in instances where an external entity first discovered the remains.

Border Patrol agreed with GAO's recommendation that it take steps to ensure it collects and records available information on migrant deaths, including those identified by external entities. Border Patrol has implemented the recommendation by taking steps to revise its guidance, meeting with sectors and reviewing their program reports, and coordinating with external entities.

In its August 2023 report to Congress on migrant deaths, Customs and Border Protection provided data for fiscal years 2018 through 2022 on migrant deaths. However, the report does not include a discussion of data limitations as GAO previously recommended. For instance, officials from one sector told us that large land areas along the border, sometimes combined with hazardous terrain, make it difficult to discover all remains, leading to some migrant deaths going unreported. More specifically, in April 2022, GAO reported that Border Patrol had not reported to Congress complete data on migrant deaths or disclosed limitations with the data it reported. GAO recommended that Border Patrol include known migrant deaths, including those reported by external entities, and any data limitations in public agency reports and those to Congress. Border Patrol agreed with this recommendation and has taken some steps toward addressing it. To fully address the recommendation, Border Patrol should include data limitation disclosures in its annual reports to Congress. By including data limitations in its reports, Border Patrol could provide context for Congress and the public to better understand data on migrant deaths.