[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7402 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7402
To reimburse the State of Texas for expenses incurred for activities
conducted relating to securing the southern international border of the
United States, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 15, 2024
Mr. Williams of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To reimburse the State of Texas for expenses incurred for activities
conducted relating to securing the southern international border of the
United States, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Operation Lone Star Reimbursement
Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The Federal Government is primarily responsible for
securing the borders of the United States at and between ports
of entry.
(2) Due to the lack of action by the Federal Government,
the State of Texas has been forced to continually appropriate
funds to secure the southern border of the United States.
(3) Texas has taken these actions to help maintain safety
and security for all citizens across the United States by
protecting against the criminal acts of--
(A) human trafficking;
(B) sex trafficking;
(C) drug proliferation;
(D) illicit movement of weapons and contraband;
(E) criminal organizations; and
(F) unlawful entry.
(4) The amount the State of Texas spent on border security
to combat these criminal acts was--
(A) more than $800,000,000 in the years 2020
through 2021; and
(B) more than $2,926,400,000 in the years 2022
through 2023.
(5) The State of Texas plans to spend an additional
$4,600,000,000 to secure the border in the years 2024 through
2025.
SEC. 3. REIMBURSEMENTS FOR THE STATE OF TEXAS.
(a) Application for Reimbursement.--The Governor of Texas shall
submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of the
Treasury an application for reimbursement, which shall include--
(1) a list of expenses incurred by the State of Texas for
activities conducted relating to securing the southern
international border of the United States during the years
2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024; and
(2) the total amount of expenses incurred for such
activities.
(b) Reimbursement.--Not later than 60 days after the State of Texas
submits an application for reimbursement pursuant to subsection (a),
the Secretary of the Treasury shall pay to the State of Texas, out of
any amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, an amount equal
to the total amount of expenses described in subsection (a)(2).
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