President Donald Trump signed into law Wednesday legislation that fully funds U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for the next three fiscal years.
The Secure America Act provides $2.5 billion to DHS for unexpected and unplanned security-related expenses, $3.4 billion for the procurement and upgrade of border surveillance and screening technology, $7.4 billion for ICE, and $9.5 billion for nonimmigration functions of CBP. ICE’s funding includes $108.5 million to allow Homeland Security Investigations to conduct child sexual exploitation and abuse investigations.
The bill also funds immigration enforcement and cooperation with state and local law enforcement including $2.5 billion for reimbursements to state and local governments participating in homeland security and border enforcement operations with federal law enforcement, $13 billion for immigration enforcement activities at CBP, and $31 billion for ICE.
“I am proud that House Republicans passed legislation today (June 9) to fully fund ICE and CBP in the face of Democrats’ efforts to defund law enforcement,” U.S. Rep. Michael Guest (R-MS), House Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement chairman, said. “Under President Trump, our borders are more secure than ever thanks to the men and women of the U.S. Border Patrol and ICE. With the passage of the Secure America Act, Republicans are ensuring these dedicated personnel have the resources needed to disrupt cartels, combat human trafficking and drug smuggling, and remove public safety threats from our communities. Republicans will continue to support DHS and the important work of law enforcement officers who keep our country safe and secure.”
The House passed six final appropriations bills in January that fully fund DHS for a fiscal year as well as funding the personnel and missions of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and others. Democrats blocked its passage.
House Republicans voted again to fully fund DHS in March and voted to advance a resolution that emphasized the critical need to fully fund the department. The House Committee on Homeland Security holds a hearing with testimony from officials at TSA, CISA, the Coast Guard, and FEMA who spoke of the negative impacts of the shutdown.
Congress passed the Secure America Act in April, ending the shutdown.