House and Senate negotiators stripped language from a $43-billion homeland security spending bill that would have required more fencing to be built on the U.S.-Mexico border. The Senate version of the bill had an amendment from Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) to require 600 more miles of double-layer border fence to be built by Dec. 31, 2010. To date, 34.3 miles of double-layer fencing have been put in place. In 2008 Congress mandated that 700 miles of fencing be built.