December 13, 2022 6:12pm EST
Biden admin seeks $4 billion in additional border funding, predicts post-Title 42 border surge
There have been over half a million migrant encounters since October.
By Adam Shaw , Rich Edson | Fox News
The Biden administration is requesting billions in additional funding for the border as it predicts an enormous spike in migrant encounters when the Title 42 authority to quickly expel migrants due to the COVID-19 pandemic ends later this month.
According to a congressional aide, the Biden administration is seeking $2 billion for additional funding for Customs and Border Protection (CBP) , as well as $2 billion for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
That request, Fox is told, is based off the Department of Homeland Security’s estimation of daily encounters once Title 42 is ended on Dec. 21. A court ordered the administration to stop using the authority -- which has been used since March 2020 to quickly return migrants to Mexico -- after finding it to be unlawful.
That "flow estimation" predicts between 9,000 and 15,000 migrant crossings a day once Title 42 ends. For context, the average for fiscal year 2022 -- in which there were a record 2.3 million migrant crossings -- was approximately 6,500 crossings a day.
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The $4 billion funding request would fund "border management" and DHS would use it on soft-sided facilities, migrant care, transportation, processing, and the Emergency Food and Shelter program. That is part of a six-point plan the administration has released that includes surging resources to the border, anti-smuggling operations and an increased use of alternative expulsion authorities such as expedited removal.
The request comes as authorities at the border have already been overwhelmed with the high numbers they have been encountering in recent weeks. Fox News reported on Tuesday that there have been more than 500,000 encounters already this fiscal year, which began in October. There have been over 505,000 encounters, averaging at just under 7,000 a day. Of those, 162,547 have been expelled under Title 42.
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/biden-admin-seeks-4-billion-additional-border-funding-predicts-post-title-42-border-surge
