Trump Signs $69.5 Billion Immigration Enforcement Bill, Funding ICE Through End of Term

WASHINGTON -- President Donald Trump on June 10 signed into law a $69.5 billion immigration enforcement package that funds U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection through the remainder of his second term, capping a weeks-long legislative battle that required Republicans to sidestep the Senate's normal procedural rules.

The law, formally named the Secure America Act, passed the House on June 9 by a margin of 214 to 212, according to reporting by Courthouse News Service. The Senate had approved the bill early on June 5 by a vote of 52 to 47 following a marathon session that stretched nearly 19 hours.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska was the lone Republican to break with her party on final passage, according to a Brownstein client alert published June 5. Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado, a Democrat, was absent for the vote.

Republicans used budget reconciliation to advance the bill, a procedure that allows the Senate to pass legislation on a simple majority rather than the 60 votes usually required to overcome a filibuster. According to the American Immigration Council, Congress used the reconciliation process for the second time in less than a year to pour billions into immigration enforcement.

The White House said the bill allocates $38 billion for ICE, $26 billion for Border Patrol and another $5 billion to cover unforeseen costs, according to PBS NewsHour. The funds are front-loaded to ensure continuous agency operations through 2029.

Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott said ahead of the vote that absent the reconciliation funds, the agency was struggling to correctly pay its employees and fulfill contracts, according to NPR.

The vote ended what NPR described as a 115-day standoff over immigration funding. Democrats had blocked full DHS appropriations since last year, demanding guardrails on immigration enforcement activity. When those negotiations with the White House collapsed, Republican leaders in both chambers turned to reconciliation.

The nearly 19-hour Senate vote-a-rama produced no successful amendments. Senators took roll call votes on 25 amendments and approved none, with three additional amendments failing by voice vote, according to the Brownstein analysis. The biggest flashpoint was a $1.8 billion Justice Department settlement fund proposed by the administration. Democrats and a handful of Republican holdouts argued Congress should prohibit the fund outright. The Senate rejected a Democratic motion by Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York to send the bill back to committee with instructions to block the fund, with that measure failing 49 to 50, according to MS Now reporting.

Separate language that would have provided $1 billion in Secret Service funding for a White House East Wing renovation, including a proposed ballroom, was stripped from the final bill before passage after pushback from a number of Senate Republicans, CBS News reported.

Sen. Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota navigated the amendment gauntlet without forcing Republicans into direct confrontations with the president on any of the contested provisions, according to MS Now.

Immigration advocates raised concerns after the bill's passage. The American Immigration Council said in a fact sheet that funding ICE outside the regular appropriations process removes many of the tools Congress typically uses to direct and oversee how taxpayer dollars are spent.

Some Republicans in both chambers are already discussing a third reconciliation bill this Congress. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, President Trump has called for an additional $350 billion in defense spending, while some House Republicans have pushed for cuts to safety net programs to help offset future costs.

Sources cited:
- American Immigration Council (https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/fact-sheet/whats-in-the-secure-america-act/)
- Courthouse News Service (https://www.courthousenews.com/house-passes-70-billion-reconciliation-package-funding-ice-through-end-of-trump-term/)
- NPR (https://www.npr.org/2026/06/09/nx-s1-5851664/house-reconciliation-vote-immigration-enforcement-ice-border-patrol)
- Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck (https://www.bhfs.com/insight/senate-approves-dhs-funding-house-set-for-final-vote/)
- CBS News (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/senate-vote-a-rama-ice-funding-reconciliation/)
- MS Now (https://www.ms.now/news/senate-republicans-fall-in-line-trump-pass-reconciliation)
- PBS NewsHour (https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-live-house-considers-reconciliation-bill-funding-trumps-immigration-enforcement-agenda)
- National Low Income Housing Coalition (https://nlihc.org/resource/house-republicans-pass-and-president-signs-law-reconciliation-20-providing-70-billion-ice)