House Passes Immigration Enforcement Bill
The House of Representatives approved President Donald Trump’s significant immigration enforcement bill on Thursday, which directs billions toward border security efforts.
In a narrow vote of 218 to 214, House members sent both tax and immigration measures to the president. Notably, two Republicans, Thomas Massey from Kentucky and Brian Fitzpatrick from Pennsylvania, sided with Democrats against the legislation. Immigration enforcement advocates celebrated the bill’s passage, highlighting the substantial funding increase for border security and the Department of Homeland Security.
“Over the last four years, Americans have witnessed unprecedented levels of illegal immigration, soaring costs, and serious threats to national security,” remarked Joe Chatham, the U.S. Federation of Immigration Reform’s director of government relations, in a public statement. He emphasized the importance of this new law for securing borders beyond the present administration and aiming to address the millions of undocumented individuals in the country.
Chatham noted that Congress approved over $60 billion specifically for border security infrastructure. This includes funding to complete the border wall, as well as technology designed to detect illegal crossings and additional personnel and facilities for customs and border protection.
The bill allocates more than $46 billion for wall construction and border barrier systems. According to the House Homeland Security Committee, this funding will cover 701 miles of primary wall, 900 miles of river barriers, and numerous other secondary barriers, aside from replacing existing pedestrian and vehicle barriers.
Additionally, the legislation will provide for the hiring of 5,000 new Customs and Border Protection officers, along with 3,000 new Border Protection agents and 200 new agents for Air and Marine Operations.
This push for increased border funding comes amid significant progress made by the Trump administration in securing U.S. borders. The Department of Homeland Security recently announced a historic low in immigration encounters, with 25,243 recorded in June, marking a drastic decline compared to the 62,000 encounters from May 2024.
However, reactions to the bill’s immigration measures vary. House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries expressed concerns, suggesting that this “beautiful bill” could lead to an increase in deportations.
Conversely, the Director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) welcomed the substantial resources provided by the new bill. He expressed gratitude to President Trump, asserting that this funding would empower efforts to ensure community safety by allowing agents to identify and remove criminal aliens.
