ICE, CBP Get Nearly $70B Funding Boost Through 2029
Funding authority for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is secured through 2029 after both the House and Senate passed a nearly $70 billion reconciliation bill.
President Trump signed the Secure America Act into law and said the legislation will “give the heroes of ICE and border patrol ... the support and resources they need to defend our borders, protect our homeland and to keep America safe.”
The measure includes lump sums of money that need to be spent through 2029 and not by a certain fiscal year. The bill includes the following:
$38 billion for ICE to hire, pay, train, and equip officers. That includes $7 billion for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and $31 billion for immigration enforcement work including new tech and hiring more attorneys.
$22 billion for CBP to hire, pay, train, and equip new personnel.
$5 billion for border security technology and screening, including artificial intelligence.
$350 million for enforcement in localities that do not coordinate directly with ICE.
And ICE has a shopping list with the money.
Matt Ellison, ICE assistant director for law enforcement systems and analysis, said items on his list include wearable headset displays so officers do not need to be phones during an operation.
The signing of the Secure America Act ends a months-long standoff over immigration enforcement funding, that saw DHS plunged into a record-long 73-day shutdown.
Democrats pushed for additional restrictions on immigration enforcement authorities, while Republicans opposed provisions including warrant requirements for certain home entries and limits on officers wearing masks. In the end, those provisions were not included in the final legislation.
Meanwhile critics including Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)- the only Senate Republican to vote against the bill- say it sets a dangerous precedent by appropriating for three years instead of one.
"In doing so, it reduces Congress' ability to apply reasonable checks on immigration policy for the remainder of this administration and into the next," wrote Sen. Murkowski.
FY 2027 DHS Bill Advances
And while the Secure America Act was in its final stages of passage, Congressional appropriators were busy with DHS funding for FY 2027.
The House Appropriations Committee advanced a bill funding DHS at just under $100 billion in FY 2027, along party lines. The initial bill would provide CBP with $28 billion in the coming fiscal year while ICE is slated to get $10 billion. That’s in addition to the new reconciliation money.
