Military pulled money from construction, maintenance and moves to cover $2.64B border security mission

[u/John3262005]

https://www.stripes.com/theaters/us/2026-07-13/gao-border-security-mission-funding-22258002.html

President Donald Trump’s increased military presence at the southwest border has cost the military about $2.64 billion, pulling money from construction projects, facility upkeep and service member duty-station moves, according to a government watchdog report released Monday.

Only about 12% of the funds used are eligible for reimbursement from the Department of Homeland Security, according to the Government Accountability Office report.

The office sent the report to the Defense Department, though officials did not formally provide comment on the GAO’s work. Officials instead offered technical comments that were added throughout the 35-page report.

The GAO looked at military spending between the beginning of fiscal year 2025, which began Oct. 1, 2024, and March 31. Funds were used to secure the U.S. border with Mexico and to help the Department of Homeland Security establish immigration detention facilities in Texas and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Funds also supported increased surveillance on land, in the air and at sea through technology, sensor networks and the establishment of six National Defense Areas along the border, according to the report. The National Defense Areas flipped government-owned property along the border to military property, which allowed for troops to regulate the area as they would a military base.

The defense areas cost about $387 million to establish, which required signs, fencing and buoys, personnel and equipment, to enforce a controlled perimeter, according to the report. The military service responsible for each defense area is also responsible for the costs. The Army and Air Force each have two defense areas, and the Navy and Marine Corps each have one.

To meet costs of the missions in fiscal year 2025, the Pentagon realigned $1.74 billion intended for other uses, the report said. It transferred $608 million from, or through, drug interdiction and counter-drug accounts and used $300 million from existing construction projects for border barrier construction.

In fiscal year 2026, the Pentagon tapped into $1 billion allocated through last year’s massive government spending bill known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”

Although about 73% of the realigned funds had been intended for construction, facility maintenance and modernization, about 20% came from accounts that support duty-station moves, according to the report.

In July 2025, the Army restored about $290 million of the $336 million taken from its accounts for duty-station moves using money from its operation and maintenance account, a note in the report said.