Federal agents, including members of the Department of Homeland Security, Border Patrol, and law enforcement, attempt to pull protesters back outside a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility downtown, October 4, 2025, in Portland, Oregon.
Spencer Pratt | Getty Images
The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday approved a three-year budget that paves the way for Congress to consider an additional $70 billion for immigration enforcement efforts by federal agents.
The House voted 215-211, with no Democrats supporting it. House Speaker Mike Johnson held off on voting for more than five hours to get enough Republicans to support the bill. Some agricultural states had put future votes on expanding sales of ethanol-blended gasoline on hold.
The Senate approved the plan on April 23. The House will follow suit, and it will be up to Republicans in both chambers to finalize the details of the $70 billion proposal and pass it before sending it to President Donald Trump for legislation.
Republicans hope to do so in May and plan to use a rarely used special procedure that would allow the bill to pass the Senate without support from Democrats.
Republicans used a similar process last year to funnel about $130 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Protection, a huge sum of money that President Trump requested to carry out a massive immigration deportation campaign.
Republicans are resisting attempts by Democrats to limit ICE and Border Patrol operations in U.S. cities, which have sparked protests, especially after the shooting deaths of two Americans by federal agents in Minneapolis this year.
A series of agencies under the Department of Homeland Security will be defunded by the end of this week unless Congressional Republicans reach agreement on separate bills for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30.
The Senate has passed a bill to provide funding to DHS agencies, including the Secret Service, Coast Guard and Federal Emergency Management Agency, but House Republicans have so far refused to support it.
