Governor Abbott pushes for federal reimbursement amid new National Guard border duties

AUSTIN, Texas (KEYE) — The Texas National Guard has been granted new authority to make immigration arrests under specific circumstances, marking a significant shift in their role at the border.

This change is part of a memorandum of understanding between Texas and the U.S. Border Patrol, which allows select National Guard members to arrest migrants if they are accompanied by a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) official or can reach one via phone or radio.

Jon Taylor, Chair of Political Science and Geography at UTSA, described the agreement as unprecedented.

"This is the first time this has ever been invoked. So we're in kind of uncharted territory," Taylor said.

Despite the new authority, the agreement does not include training requirements for the National Guard members, who are traditionally trained for military operations rather than law enforcement.

Taylor noted, "National Guard members are not trained to be police officers, in essence, or to be county sheriffs."

The decision comes as the Texas Department of Public Safety reports a significant decrease in border crossings, with just over 300 reported on Sunday, February 9.

DPS has also been authorized to help Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers as they conduct operations around Texas.

Taylor suggested that while the National Guard may not make many arrests because of the drop in crossings, the move sends a strong message to the federal government.

"We're helping yet again with border control and border enforcement, and we're spending yet more money to do this. We need to be reimbursed for it before you guys take over," Taylor explained.

The Texas National Guard agreement stipulates that Texas is responsible for all associated costs but encourages good recordkeeping in case CBP opts to reimburse.

Governor Abbott is seeking federal reimbursement for $11 billion spent on border efforts in recent years.

He is scheduled to return to Washington, D.C., this week to continue those discussions.

The governor said in an interview that the chances taxpayers are on the hook for another $6.5 billion in spending toward border security in this year's budget are contingent on whether the federal government reimburses Texas for its spending on border security initiatives over the last four years.

"What we will have to learn over the course of this session is exactly what all the Trump administration will be doing, how that may be able to reduce what Texas is having to spend on the border," Abbott said. "One thing that we've seen is that illegal immigration across the border is slowed to just a trickle. If we're able to maintain that, it means that the border is going to be more secure. If the border is more secure, we can recalibrate exactly what we need to spend."

Senator John Cornyn has agreed to mount a cause for Congress to reimburse the state.