HR 5525: Continuing Appropriations and Border Security Enhancement Act, 2024

HR 5525 in plain English: This bill would provide temporary continuing appropriations to fund federal government operations through October 31, 2023, setting total discretionary budget authority at $1,590,000,000,000, while reducing funding for most non-defense programs by 8.1%. It also includes major border security measures and changes to immigration law, such as requiring construction of at least 900 miles of border wall and imposing new limits on asylum eligibility.

Stated purpose

To keep the federal government funded through October 31, 2023, by providing temporary appropriations at roughly the prior year's levels, and to strengthen border security by requiring more wall construction, increasing Border Patrol staffing, and tightening rules around who qualifies for asylum.

Key points

• Funds federal agencies through October 31, 2023, at $1,590,000,000,000 in discretionary budget authority, cutting most non-defense programs by 8.1%
• Requires DHS to build at least 900 miles of U.S.-Mexico border wall, up from the current 700-mile requirement
• Mandates CBP maintain at least 22,000 full-time Border Patrol agents by September 30, 2025, with up to $100,000,000 authorized for retention bonuses
• Introduces a mandatory asylum application fee of at least $50, and raises employment authorization fees to between $500 and $1,000
• Authorizes $125,000,000 for border barrier construction and $33,000,000 for license plate reader upgrades at ports of entry

Arguments supporters make

• Pairing a short-term spending bill with border security measures forces action on what supporters call a genuine crisis at the southern border, rather than passing a clean funding bill that ignores it.
• Requiring more wall construction, higher staffing levels, and tighter asylum rules gives enforcement agencies the tools and personnel they say they need to manage record numbers of border crossings.
• Cutting non-defense spending by 8.1% reflects fiscal discipline and pushes Congress toward passing full-year budgets instead of relying on open-ended continuing resolutions.

Arguments opponents make

• Attaching sweeping immigration policy changes to a must-pass funding bill is seen as using the threat of a government shutdown as leverage rather than debating these policies on their own merits.
• The 8.1% across-the-board cut to many domestic programs would reduce services that lower-income Americans, veterans' programs, and other groups depend on, with little targeted review of priorities.
• Tightening asylum rules and resuming border wall construction could violate U.S. treaty obligations, limit protection for people fleeing genuine danger, and face legal challenges that delay or block implementation.

Tradeoffs

Preventing a government shutdown requires quick passage, but the border security and asylum provisions are large policy changes that critics say deserve separate, careful debate; accepting the funding also means accepting spending cuts that fall unevenly on domestic programs while defense and veterans funding is held harmless.

Current status in Congress: Passed House.

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