President Donald Trump signed a bill into law on Wednesday that provides nearly $70 billion to fund his immigration and deportation agenda for the remainder of his term. The legislation allocates $38 billion for U.S.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement and $26 billion for the Border Patrol, with an additional $5 billion set aside for unforeseen costs, according to the White House. The signing took place in the Oval Office, one day after House Republicans pushed the measure through by a narrow 214-212 vote, overcoming Democratic opposition.
The bill ends a nearly six-month funding impasse for the Department of Homeland Security that began after the shooting deaths of two U.S. citizens, Alex Pretti and Renee Good, in January during federal immigration enforcement operations in Minneapolis.
Democrats had demanded changes to immigration enforcement following the shootings, leading to the longest funding gap in the agency's history. Republicans ultimately chose to proceed without Democratic support.
The new law provides funding for the agencies over the next three years, front-loading routine annual appropriations to ensure a virtually uninterrupted flow of money as the administration aims to deport approximately 1 million people per year. Earlier proposals to include $1 billion for White House security—including for Trump's new ballroom—and a $1.8 billion fund to compensate allies claiming political persecution were dropped due to political toxicity.
The final bill focuses exclusively on immigration enforcement, a topic Republicans have framed as a defining issue between the two major parties, hoping it will boost their prospects in November's midterm elections.