Are more tax dollars successful in securing the border?

LAREDO, TX (KTRK) -- Amidst calls to increase spending on Texas border security, ABC-13 found hundreds of millions of dollars already being spent on border protection but hazy criteria on how the state measures border security success - or failure.

The money goes toward personnel, gunboats on the Rio Grande, cameras in the brush and aviation patrols. In addition, a three-week, $3 million surge of state Department of Public Safety officers along the border last year was called a success by authorities.

The DPS cited significant decreases in drug seizures, as well as successes in the recovery of stolen vehicles during the surge.

"DPS' mission is to serve and protect Texans," spokesman Tom Vinger said. "Consequently, we have an obligation to protect them from all threats, including those resulting from an unsecure border - and we will continue doing so in support of our law enforcement partners."

But that surge accounted for less than two percent of state border security funding. But neither state nor federal officials could provide statistics showing how successful the use of the remaining 98-percent is.

The DPS say, though, that their efforts are boosted because of support from local and federal law enforcement, such as the Laredo Police Department and the US Border Patrol.

They also point to a streak of other success stories, including:

Operation Border Star, a state-led initiative involving 165 agencies launched in 2007; remote-area covert operation squads called Ranger Reconnaissance Teams and Operation Drawbridge, an innovative technology system to monitor remote areas of the border on a 24/7 basis, using low-cost, commercial wildlife motion-detecting cameras adapted to meet law enforcement needs.

As of the end of March 2014, Operation Drawbridge resulted in the apprehension of more than 30,000 individuals and more than 59 tons of narcotics, according to Vinger.

But firm statistics and benchmarks to show successes on Texas' overall border policy are difficult to find and some politicians are asking questions.

House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio wrote a letter to the DPS May 27 asking "how additional spending is going to provide a level of security that we currently lack" and "how do we measure success?"

Straus' letter reads in part: "First, does DPS have sufficient resources to address the current situation? If not, what will be the cost of an operation, and how long will the state incur that cost? How would this operation affect other law enforcement operations around the state? It would also be helpful for the Texas House to know which resources will be deployed to the border that aren't there already. Finally, in light of previous DPS surge operations, at what point will we have sufficient resources along the border..."

And certainly the federal government isn't waiting on more Texas state troopers.

"Whether it's one hundred troopers, two troopers, or one thousand troopers, our efforts will be the same," US Customs & Border Protection Agent David Benavides told ABC-13.

More troopers are on the way. During the GOP primary this past year, promises to better secure the border were made by every candidate running.

Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Republican nominee for governor, wants to nearly double state spending on border protection to $300 million a year and hire 500 new troopers.

Houston state Sen. Dan Patrick, who secured the GOP Republican nomination for Lieutenant Governor, has long talked about securing the Texas/Mexico border and has been criticized for describing the push of undocumented immigrants to Texas as an "illegal invasion."

Patrick also said during the GOP convention in Fort Worth this past weekend that Republicans could find common ground with Hispanics on the issue.

"The idea that we're not going to be able to attract Hispanic voters to our party over immigration is wrong," Patrick told convention delegates. "We're not against immigration, we're against illegal immigration."

Still, a softer GOP stance on immigration for a guest worker program gave way to tough talk this week at the convention when when the party tossed that plan and called for tighter border controls.

And there appears to be plenty of political will for spending money on border security.

The legislature signed off on additional $124.3 million in additional DPS border spending from the last biennium. The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department spent $5.3 million on border security and the Governor's Office doles out $6.8 million in grants to local law enforcement agencies for stronger border protection.

But some local leaders on the border doubt the border problem is as bad as out-of-town politicians are making it. Laredo Mayor Raul Salinas accused politicians of using border communities to score political points.

"I think it's a game where you really want to scare the rest of the state and say how terrible the border is. It is unfair and it's unacceptable," he said. "Stop it. It's time to stop and tell the people the truth."

Salinas also pointed out that Laredo had only three homicides last year.

"How many did you have in Houston?" he asked.