Sponsors (6)
The bill repurposes unobligated COVID relief (SLFRF) balances to build border infrastructure and barriers—potentially improving perceived local border safety and reducing oversight risk for local governments, but at the cost of diverting pandemic recovery funds, creating legal and trust risks, and causing environmental and property impacts in border areas.
Border communities will gain new physical barriers and border infrastructure intended to reduce illegal crossings and related local safety concerns.
Local governments face reduced oversight and compliance risk when unobligated SLFRF (COVID relief) balances are redirected to complete border infrastructure projects.
Taxpayers, local governments, and schools/universities lose access to previously appropriated COVID SLFRF funds as unobligated balances are seized for border construction, reducing funding available for pandemic recovery, public health, education, and local infrastructure projects.
State and local governments and the federal funding system face legal uncertainty and reduced trust because redirecting SLFRF funds to a new purpose could prompt legal challenges and undermine confidence in the stability of emergency relief funding.
Border communities and nearby homeowners may experience environmental harms and property impacts from large-scale construction and maintenance of border infrastructure.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Redirects all unobligated federal Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds into a new Treasury account to be used by DHS to build and maintain physical barriers on the U.S. southern border.
Introduced January 9, 2025 by John A. Barrasso · Last progress January 9, 2025
Creates a new Treasury account called the Southern Border Wall Construction Fund and requires that any unobligated amounts left in the federal Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds be immediately transferred into that account. Directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to use the money in the account to build and maintain physical barriers along the U.S. southern international border.