Texas Border Coalition looks ahead to FY 2025 budget cycle

EL PASO, Texas – The Texas Border Coalition has congratulated President Biden on reaching a deal with Congress to fund the government in Fiscal Year 2024. 

In a letter sent to the White House, TBC urges the administration – in the Fiscal Year 2025 budget – to fulfill the commitments outlined in the proposed supplemental spending package last October, particularly as they relate to border communities.

TBC Chairman David Stout said critical provisions were included in the proposed FY 2025 budget to support border communities and enhance international commerce, including additional resources for funding 1,000 Customs and Border Protection Officers, allocation of funds for an additional 1,300 border patrol agents, investment in border inspection equipment, and allocation of resources for immigration judges and asylum officers.

“While we recognize the significance of proposed funding and staffing initiatives for our communities, policy changes must accompany any increases in funding and staffing levels,” Stout wrote, in the TBC’s letter to Biden. “Reforms to asylum policies with an emphasis on due process are essential to address the realities at the southern border. Simply increasing funding without addressing the shortcomings of the asylum process is inadequate for our border communities.”

Stout is also an El Paso County commissioner.

Stout said safeguards must be implemented to protect trade at the border in the event of surges in immigration. He said legislation should include additional funding for staffing land ports of entry to ensure uninterrupted trade under varying circumstances.

TBC is also emphasizing the need for comprehensive immigration reforms, with a continued focus on secure, efficient, and humane border management, in order to maintain the border region’s safety and prosperity and ensure the strength of trade with Mexico.

“We appreciate the Administration’s commitment to the border communities and urge advocating for the supplemental spending request submitted to Congress last October, incorporating the above policy elements, to effectively serve our communities and our nation,” Stout said.

Letter

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Here is a copy of the letter TBC sent to President Biden:

April 9, 2024

The Honorable Joe Biden

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

Washington, DC 20500

Dear Mr. President:

As the collective voice of communities along the Texas-Mexico border region, addressing issues pertaining to quality of life, commerce, and public policy, the Texas Border Coalition (TBC) congratulates you for reaching a deal with Congress to fund the government in FY 2024. Looking ahead to FY 2025, we urge you and your administration to fulfill the commitments outlined in your proposed supplemental spending package last October, particularly with regard to border communities.

In your proposed FY 2025 budget, critical provisions were included to support border communities and enhance international commerce, such as:

• Additional resources for funding 1,000 Customs and Border Protection Officers.
•  Allocation of funds for an additional 1,300 border patrol agents.
• Hundreds of millions of dollars are designated for border inspection equipment, including advanced Non-Intrusive Inspection technologies crucial for facilitating commerce.
• Allocation of resources for 375 immigration judge teams and 1,600 asylum officers.

These proposed funding and staffing initiatives represent significant improvements for our communities. However, policy changes must accompany any increases in funding and staffing levels. Specifically, reforms to asylum policies with an emphasis on due process are essential to address the realities at the southern border. Simply increasing funding without addressing the shortcomings of the asylum process is inadequate for our border communities.

Moreover, safeguards must be implemented to protect trade at the border in the event of surges in immigration. The benefits of free trade must not be jeopardized due to deficiencies in the asylum system. Therefore, legislation should include additional funding for land ports of entry staff to ensure uninterrupted trade under varying circumstances.

Furthermore, border funding should be coupled with policy changes establishing clear, legal pathways for individuals entering the United States for purposes such as agriculture, tourism, healthcare, and other industries vital to the U.S. economy. This includes reclaiming unused green cards and reallocating them to essential workers. Funding without these accompanying policy changes fails to address the root causes of immigration and falls short of our objectives.

Comprehensive immigration reforms, with a continued focus on secure, efficient, and humane border management, are essential to maintaining the safety and prosperity of the border region and ensuring the strength of trade with Mexico, which reverberates throughout communities across the United States.

We appreciate your commitment to the border communities and urge you to advocate for the supplemental spending request submitted to Congress last October, incorporating the above policy elements, to serve our communities and our nation effectively.

Sincerely,

David Stout

Chairman, Texas Border Coalition

County Commissioner, El Paso County, Texas       

CC: The Honorable Kamala Harris, Vice President of the United States

The Honorable Xavier Becerra, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Public Engagement, The White House

Brenda F. Abdelall, Assistant Secretary, Office of Partnership and Engagement, DHS 

Fayrouz Saad, Assistant Secretary, Private Sector Office, DHS

Ur M. Jaddou, Chief of Staff, U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, DHS 

About the Texas Border Coalition 

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TBC is a collective voice of border mayors, county judges, and economic development commissions focused on issues that affect 2.8 million people along the Texas-Mexico border region and economically disadvantaged counties from El Paso to Brownsville. 

Stout said TBC is working closely with the state and federal government to educate, advocate, and secure funding for transportation, immigration and border security, workforce development, economic development, and health care.

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