White House requests $46.5 billion for border wall construction
SAN DIEGO (Border Report) -- A couple from Salt Lake City, on vacation through Southern California this week, decided to stop by the border barrier between San Diego and Tijuana.
They were taken aback by the height of the fence and the surprisingly easy access to the area.
Before leaving, they took a selfie in front of the barrier, a moment they wanted to capture to remember their unique experience.
More border wall spots could pop up should Congress give President Donald Trump the money to build 700 additions miles, 900 miles of river barriers, and 630 miles of secondary walls -- part of a bigger bill that includes the White House's proposed tax breaks and spending cuts.
The House committee in charge of drafting Trump's border security bill is asking for about $69 billion, a substantial part of which ($46.5 billion), would go to border barriers.
The rest of the funds would pay for additional projects, including:
- $5 billion for CBP facilities
- $4.1 billion for 8,000 additional U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents, officers, and support staff
- $2 billion for CBP workforce annual retention bonuses and signing incentives
- $1.07 billion for non-intrusive inspection technology
- $2.7 billion for border surveillance technology
- $500 million for unmanned aircraft systems
- $450 million for Operation Stonegarden, a federal grant program administered by FEMA
"Considering the amount of people that are in the country illegally, many of them perpetuating crimes, we need the resources to continue doing what President Trump has promised the American people to get these individuals out of our country," said Kristi Noem, Secretary of Homeland Security during a House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing Tuesday morning.
House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he wants to have a vote on the issue by Memorial Day.
According to the Associated Press, Democrats say they will fight what House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries calls the “extreme Republican agenda.”
If passed, a vote in the Senate would be expected in July.