It’s an election year and one of the pressing topics in the presidential race is border security and immigration. Texas makes up about half of the US and Mexico border and is using its resources to fund border security.
“Texas has been ramping up, its border funding for several years now.” Texas Tribune reporter Karen Brooks Harper said. “And generally, it comes from state taxpayer money, just general revenue.”
But how much money does it cost the Texas State Government?
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
“They put… nearly five billion dollars… in the border security last just last session for the next two years.”
While that’s how much the state currently spends, experts like Juan Carlos Cerda, State Director for the American Business Immigration Coalition, argue that maybe we shouldn’t spend so much on border security.
“Immigration benefits the Texas economy,” Cerda said. “Texas is the eighth-largest economy in the world… They [immigrants] generate an income of almost, $33.9 billion in spending power.”
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Listen to Texas Wants to Know in the Audacy app or wherever you get your podcasts.
