Congress is currently considering a bill to fund some core Department of Homeland Security (DHS) functions using the budget reconciliation process. The Secure America Act (S. 2) was passed by the Senate on June 5 and is now under consideration in the House of Representatives.

Funding Provisions in the Secure America Act

The bill would appropriate a combined $69.5B to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to fund personnel, technology, infrastructure, and operations supporting border security and immigration enforcement activities. All but small portion of this funding would be available in the current 2026 fiscal year (FY) through FY 2029, which ends on September 30, 2029.

The relatively short piece of legislation – just seven sections – has the following provisions:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection Personnel (Sec. 101): Appropriates $9.5B to CBP to hire, pay, train, and equip Border Patrol agents and support personnel for functions other than immigration enforcement and customs. The bill restricts use of funds “to recruit, hire, or train personnel for processing coordinator duties after October 31, 2028.”

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Sec. 102): Appropriates $7.4B to ICE for Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents and support personnel, including $108M dedicated to child exploitation investigators and forensics analysts at the Victim Identification Laboratory and HSI Cyber Crimes Center. This HSI mission support and operations funding excludes the immigration/customs enforcement missions.

Noteworthy restrictions:

• Sections 101 and 102 explicitly restrict funds from being used for immigration enforcement and customs functions. Sections 201 and 202 are specifically authorized for immigration enforcement activities.

Potential Contractor Implications: The $108M earmark for child exploitation investigators and forensics analysts could potentially create some related demand for specialized digital forensics and investigative tools and supporting software and IT infrastructure.

Border Security, Technology, and Screening (Sec. 103): Appropriates more than $3.4B for the procurement of non-intrusive inspection equipment incorporating AI, machine learning, and computer vision; autonomous border surveillance towers; biometric entry/exit systems; and air/marine platform upgrades.

Noteworthy observations:

• This section requires any surveillance towers procured with this funding for deployment along the southwest or northern border to be “tested and accepted by CBP to deliver autonomous capabilities,” i.e., towers must meet the autonomous performance standard before funds can be applied.
• This section defines "autonomous" as “a system designed to apply artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, or other algorithms to accurately detect, identify, classify, and track items of interest in real time such that the system can make operational adjustments without the active engagement of personnel or continuous human command or control.”

Potential Contractor Implications: The $3.4B in funds for non-intrusive inspection equipment, autonomous surveillance towers and biometric entry/exit systems incorporating emerging technologies may present new or expanding contract opportunities. The statutory definition of "autonomous" establishes a performance threshold that procurement specifications will likely need to reflect, creating a defined technical standard for vendors developing or bidding on surveillance and sensing solutions.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (Sec. 201): Appropriates $13.0B to CBP for hiring, paying, training, and equipping CBP agents and support staff to conduct immigration enforcement activities, including mission support and operations and maintenance.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Sec. 202): Appropriates nearly $31.1B to ICE for personnel hiring/training, transportation, IT maintenance and sustainment for enforcement/removal operations (including body-worn cameras and fee collection improvements), facility maintenance, fleet maintenance, 287(g) agreements, legal representation, and at least $350M for operations targeting unlawful aliens in non-cooperating jurisdictions.

Potential Contractor Implications: The bill does not earmark specific amounts beyond the $350M for operations in non-cooperating jurisdictions, leaving more than $30.7B to fund the other areas. While most of the funding will likely go toward personnel and operational priorities, some portion will go toward technology, including IT maintenance and sustainment for enforcement and removal operations, including body-worn cameras and fee collection improvements. These identified IT product and services categories suggest near-term procurement activity.

Additional Department of Homeland Security Appropriations (Sec. 104 and 203): Appropriates an additional $5.0B to DHS, split between two sections, with no directed provisions other than the funds would be available until September 30, 2029. Each section includes equal amounts in distinct funding under separate committees/titles within the bill, $2.5B under the Committee On Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (Title 1, Sec. 104) and $2.5B under the Committee on the Judiciary (Title II, Sec. 203). to support border security and immigration enforcement, available until September 30, 2029. This funding is distinct from other provisions in the bill.

Closing Thoughts

As of this publishing, the House has advanced the bill through the rules process to begin floor debate and to hold a final vote on the bill. It appears unlikely that any amendments to the bill will be allowed/made, because doing so would require either another vote in the Senate or for the two bodies to reconcile the differing language and hold additional votes, not something that appears to have momentum at this point.