Border Security Plan Signed

The U.S. and Canadian governments have signed off on a plan that will increase security at the border while making truck crossings faster.
Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Manley announced the plan Wednesday in Canada.

Among the provisions in the plan are resuming use of a computer system that eases the entry process into both countries for low-risk, preapproved users, and using new technology to clear goods in factories, rail yards and seaports instead of waiting until they're sitting in a truck at the border.
According to the Washington Post, loaded trucks headed for either country would be pre-cleared and sealed with electronic sensors and then would be allowed to go into a fast lane at the border.
One issue still under discussion is putting guards and customs officials from both countries on both sides of the border. That would require a change in Canadian law to allow armed U.S. border guards on Canadian soil. Some Canadians believe this would amount to a loss of sovereignty.
Ridge praised a Canadian proposal to spend more than $5 billion over five years to upgrade border facilities and put security measures into place.