States that fought President Joe Biden‘s border policies could see a boon under little-known provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Tucked deep into the bill’s text are a pair of provisions that could send $13.5 billion back to state and local governments for immigration enforcement, with more than one shot taken at Biden along the way.
One is the Bridging Immigration-Related Deficits Experienced Nationwide reimbursement, an acronym that spells “BIDEN,” which is worth $3.5 billion. The other, known as the State Border Security Reinforcement Fund, is worth even more at $10 billion. Both can be used for expenses dating back to Jan. 20, 2021 — Biden’s Inauguration Day.
While neither is named directly, Arizona and especially Texas should see the bulk of the benefit from the twin funds, as both fought hard against the Biden administration over immigration.
“It makes those states whole for the noncompliance with the criminal detention provisions in the Immigration and Nationality Act under the last administration,” Center for Immigration Studies fellow Art Arthur said. “I think Texas is going to be the biggest beneficiary, followed by Arizona, because of the actions that they took under the last governor.”
Texas, under Gov. Greg Abbott (R-TX), fought Biden for almost his entire term, setting up buoys in the Rio Grande, erecting its own version of a border wall, and sending state troopers to the border to supplement Border Patrol.
