A Department of Homeland Security official was unable to answer questions Thursday about how many people leave the United States every year.
After admitting between 400,000 and 500,000 people overstay their visas annually, Alan Bersin, assistant secretary for international affairs at DHS, said the agency only has ready access to data about the individuals that leave the country by air.
Bersin said the U.S. has an agreement with the Canadian government that allows DHS to gather information about non-citizens that travel across the northern border.
But he was unable to tell Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., how or even if the agency tracks the movements of visa holders who leave the U.S. by boat or on foot.
Meadows raised concerns that DHS does not have a basic understanding of the number of people who overstay their visas or where those people end up.
DHS officials struggled to answer a variety of questions about the refugee and visa vetting process, declining to provide specific data points pending the release of a report six months from now.
