[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2128 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2128
To direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants to certain
border communities for the purpose of reimbursing such communities for
expenses related to security measures along the United States land
border with Mexico, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 14, 2025
Mr. Jackson of Texas (for himself, Ms. De La Cruz, Mr. Crenshaw, Mr.
Luttrell, Mr. Ellzey, Mr. Pfluger, Mr. Gooden, Mr. Babin, Mr. Gill of
Texas, Mr. Sessions, and Mr. Gosar) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to make grants to certain
border communities for the purpose of reimbursing such communities for
expenses related to security measures along the United States land
border with Mexico, 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 ``Reimbursing Border Communities Act
of 2025''.
SEC. 2. BORDER COMMUNITY REIMBURSEMENT GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, the
Secretary of Homeland Security shall make grants to certain border
communities for the purpose of reimbursing such communities for
expenses related to security measures along the United States land
border with Mexico, including additional wages for local law
enforcement providing security for such border.
(b) Eligibility.--To be eligible for a grant under this section, a
border community--
(1) shall be a unit of local government located in the
United States within 200 miles of the land border with Mexico;
(2) shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security an
application in such form, at such time, and containing such
information as the Secretary determines appropriate; and
(3) may not be a sanctuary jurisdiction.
(c) Grant Amount.--A grant made under subsection (a) may not exceed
$500,000 for each fiscal year.
(d) Limitation on Use of Funds.--Any grant awarded under this
section may not be used to reimburse nonprofit organizations, to fund
legal representation, or to provide educational, housing, food, or
healthcare resources to an alien.
(e) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter through 2035, the
Secretary, acting through the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection, shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the
House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report that includes--
(1) information relating to the--
(A) use of each grant made under subsection (a);
and
(B) implementation of this section; and
(2) any recommendations of the Secretary for improving the
implementation of this section, including with respect to the
amount of funding provided to each recipient of a grant under
this section.
(f) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``sanctuary jurisdiction'' means a State or
unit of local government that--
(A) violates section 642 of the Illegal Immigration
Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8
U.S.C. 1373);
(B) restricts compliance with a detainer issued by
the Secretary of Homeland Security (or the Secretary's
designee); or
(C) has any law or policy in effect that violates
the immigration laws.
(2) The term ``alien'' has the meaning given such term in
section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
1101).
(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated $25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2036 to
carry out this section.
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