This bill would move leftover IRS enforcement money to border security. One-third would pay for scanning equipment at all northern and southern land ports, aiming to scan 100% of vehicles by February 6, 2034. Two-thirds would go to build a border wall system along the southwest border, with regular progress and cost reports from the Department of Homeland Security. The bill also updates how people arriving from Mexico or Canada are handled: they must be sent back to that country (or a safe third country) to wait for their hearing, or be held while their asylum claim is screened for “credible fear.”

To boost staffing, the bill allows bonuses for U.S. Customs and Border Protection: up to $15,000 for new hires after training, yearly retention bonuses up to 15% of pay, and relocation bonuses up to 15% for agents who transfer and serve at least three years. These bonuses don’t count toward basic pay for things like retirement. The bill cites high overdose deaths, low vehicle scanning rates, large numbers of encounters at the border, and staff shortages as reasons for these changes.

• Who is affected: Border communities, travelers and truckers at ports of entry, migrants at the southern and northern borders, and CBP agents.
• What changes:
  • Money shifts from IRS enforcement to border inspection tech and wall construction.
  • Goal of 100% vehicle scanning at land ports by 2034.
  • Bonuses to hire, keep, and move CBP agents.
  • Returning certain arrivals to a neighboring or safe third country, or detaining them for asylum screening.
• When: Funding and actions begin on enactment; the scanning goal deadline is February 6, 2034.