Congress·In Committee·H.R. 1222

Congress Proposes Paying Texas $11.1 Billion for State-Led Border Security Efforts

Operation Lone Star Reimbursement Act

about 1 year ago·View on Congress.gov

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Stalled

No legislative action in over 90 days.

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

This bill asks the federal government to pay back the state of Texas for money spent on border security. Texas officials say they had to use state tax dollars to secure the border between January 2021 and January 2025 because they felt federal actions were not enough to stop illegal activity.
The state of Texas reports spending $11.1 billion on a program called Operation Lone Star. According to the bill, these funds were used to build 240 miles of border barriers, seize 500 million doses of fentanyl, and make over 50,000 arrests to stop human trafficking and drug smuggling.
To get the money, the Governor of Texas would need to submit a detailed list of all border expenses to the Department of Homeland Security. Federal officials would then have 120 days to review the application and decide which specific costs qualify for a refund.
Once the review is finished, the U.S. Treasury would be required to pay Texas within 60 days. This would shift the cost of these state-run border operations from Texas taxpayers to the federal government.

ImmigrationNational Security Foreign PolicyEconomy Finance

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Who is affectedScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Broader Impacts

DomainScoreShort-termLong-termReversibilityConfidence

Score

Scores: -5 (harmful) to +5 (beneficial)Short-term: 0-2 yearsLong-term: 10-30 years

State Impacts

StateScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Milestones

3 milestones3 actions

Feb 11, 2025House

Referred to the Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement.

Feb 11, 2025House

Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Feb 11, 2025

Introduced in House

Related News

2 articles

KSAT·about 1 year ago

Rep. Roger Williams introduces bill to reimburse Texas for Operation Lone Star

Rep. Roger Williams introduced a bill that would require the federal government to reimburse Texas for the state's border security operation during the Biden administration. The bill requires the Governor to submit a report of expenses, which DHS then reviews within 120 days for eligibility.

Texas Public Radio·about 1 year ago

Texas lawmakers get behind Gov. Greg Abbott's $11 billion request for border security reimbursement

State and federal lawmakers from Texas are rallying behind the $11.1 billion reimbursement request. While Republicans call it 'fair and just' for taxpayers, critics continue to question the effectiveness and human rights impact of the multi-billion dollar Operation Lone Star mission.

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