Governor Abbott, Texas State Leadership Approve $495.3 Million In Additional Funding For Operation Lone Star, Border Security Operations
Governor Greg Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, Speaker Dade Phelan, Senate Finance Committee Chair Joan Huffman, and House Appropriations Committee Chair Dr. Greg Bonnen today approved the transfer of $495.3 million to continue funding Operation Lone Star and critical border operations at other state agencies. Of those funds, $465.3 million will support the deployment of the Texas National Guard. This funding will address immediate border security needs while future funding needed to protect Texans continues to be evaluated.
"Texas will not sit on the sidelines as President Biden continues turning a blind eye to the crisis at our southern border," said Governor Abbott. "Texans’ safety and security is our top priority, and we will continue fighting to keep our communities safe. This additional funding ensures the Lone Star State is fully equipped to provide Texans the border security strategy they demand and deserve."
"As the border crisis continues and the Biden Administration considers repealing Title 42, millions of people are entering our country," said Lieutenant Governor Patrick. "Their failure to secure the southern border means that Texas must use our tax dollars to step into the breach."
"The Biden administration’s approach to our southern border is nothing short of irresponsible,” said Speaker Phelan. "As the humanitarian and security costs of this crisis continue to escalate, Texas is once again put in the position of doing the job the federal government refuses to do."
"In the past year, over one million immigrants have illegally crossed our southern border," said Senator Huffman, Chair of the Senate Finance Committee. "Of those, there have been over 14,000 criminal arrests and thousands of pounds of illegal drugs seized. Having spent my entire career fighting to preserve public safety, I believe this funding is necessary to continue the state’s efforts in supporting Operation Lone Star to combat criminal activity, human trafficking, and gang violence."
"The ongoing crisis on our southern border calls for unprecedented action by the Legislature," said Dr. Bonnen, Chair of the House Appropriations Committee. "This funding will provide agencies participating in Operation Lone Star with the necessary resources to successfully continue the states commitment to fighting the flow of migrants entering into Texas illegally. I applaud Speaker Phelan, Governor Abbott, and all of our agencies in their continued commitment to securing Texas' border."
Read the joint approval letter from the Governor and state leadership.
Governor Abbott has taken significant action to secure the border in the wake of the federal government’s inaction. Those actions include:
- Securing $4 billion in funding for Texas' border security efforts
- Launching Operation Lone Star and deploying thousands of National Guard soldiers and Texas Department of Public Safety troopers
- Arresting and jailing illegal migrants trespassing or committing other state crimes in Texas
- Allocating resources that include acquiring 1,700 unused steel panels to build the border wall in Texas
- Signing a law to make it easier to prosecute smugglers bringing people into Texas
- Signing 15 laws cracking down on human trafficking in Texas
- Signing a law enhancing penalties for the manufacturing and distribution of fentanyl
- Issuing a disaster declaration for the border crisis
- Issuing an executive order preventing non-governmental entities from transporting illegal immigrants
- Taking legal action to enforce the Remain in Mexico policy
- Taking aggressive action to secure the border as President Biden ends Title 42 expulsions, including busing migrants to Washington, D.C.
- Signing memoranda of understanding between the State of Texas and the States of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to enhance border security measures that will prevent illegal immigration from Mexico to Texas