Appropriations subcommittee presses DHS on border enforcement, detention capacity and technology

Secretary of Homeland Security Noem told members of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security that the department has driven down encounters at the southern border and shifted resources to target cartels and criminal actors, while lawmakers pressed for detail on detention capacity, technology upgrades and how reconciliation funding would be spent.

At the hearing, Noem said the department had "obtained near total control" of the southern border and that "March saw the lowest number of border encounters in recorded history ... at just under 7,200." She also told the panel that "fentanyl traffic at the border fell by 54% compared to the previous year."

Why it matters: Members across the panel said they supported stronger enforcement but sought specifics on how the department will maintain reduced encounters, manage large backlogs of immigration cases, and expand detention and removal capacity without new enacted appropriations. Ranking Member Underwood raised constitutional and oversight concerns about how DHS is using existing funds.

Most important facts: Noem said CBP recruitment is up more than 50% and Secret Service applications have risen nearly 200%; she reported more than 60,000 repatriations tied to enforcement operations and described a backlog of "up to a million cases" awaiting immigration-judge adjudication. On capacity, Noem told Rep. Guest that the department needs "upwards to an additional 50,000 beds, 60,000 beds" to hold individuals while removal and repatriation processes proceed.

Members pressed on specific operational needs. Rep. Cuellar (border district of Laredo) cited nonfunctional cameras, gaps in river-road access, invasive carrizo cane vegetation, limited aerostat coverage and radio dead spots. Noem acknowledged those local concerns and said DHS plans to expand surveillance tools — cameras, aerostats, scanners at ports of entry and other technology — and to pursue hiring and procurement to address gaps. She said some investments will be requested through the administration's reconciliation package and that a portion of near-term increases shown by the Office of Management and Budget derive from reconciliation rather than the annual appropriations request.

Lawmakers also discussed partnerships and enforcement programs. Noem described 598 active 287(g) agreements and said more than 6,200 local officers have joined task forces to assist federal immigration and law-enforcement operations. Members praised task-force results — for example, Operation Tidal Wave in Florida, which Noem said removed 1,120 individuals with criminal records — and urged continued cooperation with state and local partners.

What remained unresolved: Members sought a clearer accounting of how many additional detention beds are needed as an operational matter versus a policy target, how quickly those beds could be procured or leased, and the day-to-day operational tempo that drives average bed occupancy. Noem pledged to provide follow-up information and to work with the committee on specifics of procurement, staffing and technology deployments.

Ending: Committee chairs asked DHS to provide written responses and supporting data on detention-bed assumptions, recruitment-to-hire conversion rates, technology procurement timelines, and the department's intended use of reconciliation funds. The committee set deadlines for written responses in the post‑hearing follow-up.