HR3464-119

What This Bill Does

The State Border Security Assistance Act creates a DHS State Border Security Reinforcement Fund and appropriates $11,000,000,000 for fiscal 2025, available through September 30, 2034. DHS grants can reimburse eligible states, state agencies including National Guard units, and local governments for southern-border wall, fencing, barriers, buoys, site preparation, surveillance, interdiction, and relocation of unlawfully present aliens from small population centers, including costs incurred on or after January 20, 2021. The bill separately creates a DOJ State Criminal Alien Prosecution and Detention Fund and appropriates $3,500,000,000 for grants to locate and apprehend unlawfully present aliens, counter gang activity, investigate and prosecute crimes by aliens and drug or human trafficking crimes, run related court operations, temporarily detain aliens, transport aliens, and support law-enforcement logistics. Both funds terminate January 20, 2029, with unobligated balances returned to Treasury for deficit reduction.

Who Benefits and How

Border states benefit because DHS can reimburse completed, ongoing, and new border-wall, barrier, surveillance, and relocation expenses dating back to January 20, 2021. State National Guard units benefit because they are expressly eligible state agencies for border-security grants. Local law-enforcement agencies benefit from DOJ grants for apprehension, gang intelligence, trafficking investigations, detention, transport, and logistics. Border barrier contractors benefit indirectly from a new $11 billion funding stream for walls, fencing, barriers, buoys, materials, and personnel costs.

Who Bears the Burden and How

DHS grant staff must administer a new state border-security fund, determine eligible prior expenses, and recover unobligated balances in 2029. DOJ grant staff must administer the prosecution and detention fund and judge eligibility for law-enforcement, court, detention, transport, and logistics costs. Unlawfully present migrants face increased apprehension, detention, transportation, relocation, and prosecution capacity. Federal taxpayers bear $14.5 billion in new appropriations, less any unobligated amounts returned to Treasury.

Key Provisions

• Appropriates $11 billion to DHS for state and local border wall, fencing, barrier, buoy, surveillance, interdiction, and relocation grants.
• Allows reimbursement of eligible state and local border-security expenses incurred on or after January 20, 2021.
• Appropriates $3.5 billion to DOJ for state and local alien apprehension, prosecution, detention, transportation, gang-intelligence, trafficking, and logistics grants.
• Makes both funds available through September 30, 2034, but terminates them on January 20, 2029, with unobligated balances returned to Treasury.