Secure the Border Act of 2026
Sponsored By: Representative Roy, Chip [R-TX-21]
In Committee
Summary
**This bill centers on *deploying at least 900 miles of reinforced physical barriers along the U.S.–Mexico border*** and pairs that construction push with expanded surveillance, staffing, detention, and major asylum rule changes. It aims to speed construction and broaden enforcement tools while tightening who can seek protection.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
16 provisions identified: 5 benefits, 4 costs, 7 mixed.
New penalties for visa overstays
If enacted, the bill would create a new "Visa Overstays" offense for nonimmigrant visitors who in the aggregate fail to maintain status for 10 days or more. For each violation it would allow a civil fine of $500 to $1,000 (doubled for prior penalties) and permits criminal penalties including up to 6 months in jail for a first offense and up to 2 years for later offenses. These penalties would apply per occurrence and can be combined with criminal fines under federal law.
Stricter asylum and parole rules
If enacted, the bill would make asylum and parole rules much tighter. Asylum would be limited to people who arrived at a U.S. port of entry and the credible-fear screening test would be raised to a "more likely than not" standard. Asylum applicants generally would not be eligible for work authorization before 180 days after filing, and any work permit would last six months and could end early if the asylum claim is denied. The bill would narrow many asylum eligibility categories, speed hearings for unaccompanied children (14-day hearing and 30-day placement/processing timelines), and bar some DHS funds for NGOs that aid inadmissible entrants.
New mandatory work authorization checks
If enacted, the bill would create a new federal electronic employment eligibility verification system that answers initial queries within 3 working days and final decisions within 10 working days. Employers must attest they checked identity and work right, collect SSN or passport numbers, keep verification records for set periods, and follow phased start dates for reverification by employer size (6/12/18/24 months; agriculture deferred to 36 months). The Social Security Administration must notify people when their SSN shows unusual multiple use and can lock SSNs for verification; employers must recheck within 10 business days of notice. The bill also funds SSA responsibilities, requires identity‑authentication pilot programs within 24 months, and keeps a good‑faith safe harbor for minor errors but raises penalties and debarment risks for serious or repeated violations.
Major employer ID checks and penalties
If enacted, all employers would have to use a new DHS-run verification system on a phased schedule by employer size (≥10,000 in 6 months; 500–9,999 in 12 months; 20–499 in 18 months; 1–19 in 24 months). Agricultural workers would be excluded from reverification until 36 months. The bill would add stricter photo-matching and identity checks, allow SSN-blocking and identity-fraud suspension protections, and repeal prior E-Verify rules after 30 months. Civil fines and paperwork penalties for hiring violations would rise and repeat violators could face debarment; criminal penalties for pattern-or-practice violations would also increase.
900-mile southwest border wall mandate
If enacted, the bill would require DHS to construct physical barriers, tactical infrastructure, and technology along at least 900 miles of the southwest border and to continue until situational awareness and operational control are achieved. It would require resuming pre‑2021 projects within seven days, spend unexpired funds already obligated for wall construction, and give the Secretary waiver authority to bypass laws to speed work (waivers take effect when published in the Federal Register and Congress must be notified within seven days). The bill also sets annual implementation plans and a target of about 200 miles of construction per year and requires annual cost estimates to Congress.
Expanded border technology and flight hours
If enacted, the bill would require DHS to deploy extensive surveillance and detection technology along the southwest border, including towers, special radars, tunnel sensors, drones, and fiber optics. It would require CBP Air and Marine to reach at least 110,000 flight hours annually within 120 days and operate unmanned aircraft systems 24 hours a day on the southern border after FAA coordination. The bill also requires secure radios for CBP officers, upgrades to license plate readers, a 5‑year technology investment plan within 180 days, and extra acquisition rules for programs estimated to cost $100 million or more.
Grants and Rio Grande vegetation funding
If enacted, the bill would reauthorize Operation Stonegarden grants and authorize $110 million per year for FY2024–FY2028 to help State, local, and Tribal law enforcement in border jurisdictions pay for equipment, overtime, and personnel. The bill would also authorize $7 million per year for FY2024–FY2028 to hire contractors and remove dense vegetation along the Rio Grande that blocks CBP sight lines, with contractors to be hired within 30 days and eradication to be completed by September 30, 2027 except for maintenance.
Report and strategy on Mexican cartels
If enacted, the bill would require a report due within 60 days that lays out a national strategy to address Mexican drug cartels, assesses actions by cartels that harm the United States, and recommends whether a federal designation should be created. The report is intended to guide enforcement and interagency policy quickly after enactment.
Reopen federal immigration detention centers
If enacted, the bill would require DHS to reopen or restore ICE detention facilities that were operating on January 20, 2021 and later closed or reduced, with a statutory reopening deadline of September 30, 2023. The bill lists at least five facilities to restore and requires the South Texas family center be returned to its January 20, 2021 status unless an alternative saves time or money. DHS must file 90‑day progress reports through September 30, 2027 and notify Congress within five days when facilities hit 90%, 95%, or full capacity.
Visa-overstay counts in prosecutions
If enacted, a conviction for the bill's new visa-overstay crime could be counted as a prior conviction in later illegal-entry prosecutions. That would allow tougher treatment for repeat immigration-related offenses under existing criminal sentencing rules.
Changes to CBP staffing and funding
If enacted, the bill would authorize up to $100 million for Border Patrol retention bonuses and require 22,000 full-time equivalent Border Patrol agents by September 30, 2025. It would also bar authorized funding for some DHS programs (like Alternatives to Detention and a CBP shelter program) while authorizing $216 million for DHS intelligence and situational awareness. The bill would require CBP to update port and between-port inspection policies and would limit certain CBP transport and app uses (for example, restricting CBP One to cargo). It would also bar DHS from imposing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate without Congress and prohibit adverse action solely for vaccine refusal.
Higher asylum fees and tighter parole
If enacted, the bill would require most asylum applicants to pay a fee of at least $50 per application, with the fee capped at adjudication cost and waivers for unaccompanied children. The bill would authorize fees for EAD consideration and adjustment filings up to adjudication cost and narrow parole and asylum limits by tightening urgent humanitarian and public‑benefit definitions. Parole would usually be limited to one year with one discretionary one‑year extension, but applicants with pending adjustment requests could seek one‑year extensions until adjudication. The bill also creates specific parole paths for certain spouses/children of active duty service members and some Cuban petition beneficiaries and allows escorted same‑day parole for hearings from contiguous countries.
TSA ID rules and CBP transparency
If enacted, the bill would ban TSA from accepting many DHS/ICE immigration papers as ID at airport security and require TSA to notify ICE, CBP, and local law enforcement when such documents are shown. Within 120 days TSA would collect biometrics for people who cannot be verified as U.S. nationals and lack covered ID. The bill also limits CBP One usage, requires monthly public CBP encounter statistics by the seventh day each month, and orders quick certifications that CBP has real‑time access to foreign criminal databases and that DNA/biometric collection meets federal rules, plus an IG review of UAS mitigation.
New migration and terror reports
If enacted, the bill would require the DHS Inspector General to report on migration costs to border states and towns (first report due within one year, then annually for five years). It would also require the Secretary of Homeland Security to assess foreign terrorist organization movement attempts within 90 days and then yearly for five years and send reports to Congress.
Right to sue over parole failures
If enacted, the bill would let any person, State, or local government that loses more than $1,000 because the Federal Government failed to lawfully apply this title sue the Federal Government in district court for relief. The private cause of action applies to financial harms over the $1,000 threshold.
Faster border barriers and cooperation
If enacted, the bill would allow unused wall materials bought before enactment to be used for border wall projects and would limit consultation with landowners, agencies, and tribes so construction cannot be delayed more than seven days. The bill would also set policy directing U.S. agreements with Western Hemisphere countries to reduce illegal immigration and target foreign aid to programs shown to reduce migration.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Roy, Chip [R-TX-21]
TX • R
Cosponsors
Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5]
AZ • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Perry, Scott [R-PA-10]
PA • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Cloud, Michael [R-TX-27]
TX • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Clyde, Andrew S. [R-GA-9]
GA • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Donalds, Byron [R-FL-19]
FL • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Boebert, Lauren [R-CO-4]
CO • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Ogles, Andrew [R-TN-5]
TN • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Higgins, Clay [R-LA-3]
LA • R
Sponsored 6/8/2026
Rep. Harris, Andy [R-MD-1]
MD • R
Sponsored 6/9/2026
Rep. Self, Keith [R-TX-3]
TX • R
Sponsored 6/9/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
View on Congress.gov