How was maintenance of completed border wall sections funded and managed in 2023–2025?
Executive summary
Federal maintenance and management of completed border barrier sections between 2023 and 2025 relied largely on a patchwork of previously appropriated DHS funds, small operations-and-maintenance (O&M) lines within CBP budgets, interagency project management with DOI and USACE, and ad hoc contracting tied to new legislative pushes and emergency-style bills; significant new construction and "Smart Wall" contracts in 2025 were financed by later legislation and residual FY2021 funds while states and localities also funded their own barrier work [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]. Reporting and government reviews show funding availability was constrained by legal pauses, expirations of specific fiscal-year appropriations, and congressional debates over permissible uses of prior wall appropriations [6] [1] [7].
1. Federal funding came mostly from prior appropriations and limited O&M lines
Congress had appropriated sums for barrier construction in FY2018–FY2021 that DHS continued to manage and obligate into 2023–2025, and GAO reporting records that DHS had obligated large portions of those prior-year construction appropriations while some balances remained available for obligation through September 30, 2025 [1]. CBP historically included only a relatively small operation-and-maintenance allocation for existing barriers within its Assets and Support appropriation, indicating routine maintenance was funded out of modest, program-level O&M lines rather than a large, separate maintenance account [2].
2. Management was interagency and contract-driven, with DOI and USACE involved
Project planning, environmental review, and maintenance coordination involved interagency work: the Department of the Interior coordinates with DHS, CBP, and the Army Corps of Engineers to engage in planning, construction and maintenance phases for barrier projects [3], and GAO documents DHS’s use of interagency agreements with USACE during the earlier buildout and deobligation actions [6] [1]. Where maintenance or remediation was required, DHS/CBP selected barrier projects and awarded contracts per an amended Border Wall Plan and procurement timelines [1].
3. Legal pauses, expirations, and reprogramming shaped what maintenance got done
A Biden-era proclamation in January 2021 paused construction and obligations "to the extent permitted by law," and GAO found that pause and subsequent actions did not violate the Impoundment Control Act while noting that most prior-year appropriations were largely obligated on projects [6]. Practical effects in 2023 included deobligations and an expired FY2019 balance when contract timing failed to obligate unobligated funds before expiration, which constrained available dollars for maintenance or completion work [1].
4. 2023–2025 saw selective restarts, new contract awards, and legislative attempts to reauthorize maintenance funding
DHS announced limited moves in 2023 — planning up to 20 miles in the Rio Grande Valley using FY2019 funds and exercising waiver authorities to expedite some projects — while in 2025 CBP began awarding Smart Wall contracts funded with residual FY2021 funds and later larger appropriations under bills labeled to fund barrier construction and maintenance [7] [8] [4]. In 2025, the “One Big Beautiful Bill”/other congressional proposals and committee actions sought billions more for construction and system attributes, reflecting an active legislative effort to secure long-term funding for construction and maintenance [9] [10] [11].
5. States and local actors filled gaps, creating a parallel maintenance dynamic
States such as Texas financed their own barrier projects and related costs—Governor Abbott’s office reported billions in expenditures for state-built or state-supported barriers and border security efforts—which meant some maintenance and construction of physical barriers during this period occurred outside federal funding streams [5]. This state activity complicated federal management and raised reimbursement and jurisdictional questions that Congress and DHS faced.
6. Open questions, competing narratives, and reporting limits
GAO and congressional reports document the broad contours of funding, expirations, and contract awards through early 2024 and note DHS plans to continue obligating funds through FY2025 expiration dates [1], while CBP press releases and later congressional actions in 2025 describe substantial new Smart Wall contracts and large appropriations proposals [4] [9]. Gaps remain in public data about line-item O&M spending by site, lifecycle maintenance cost projections for completed segments, and the extent to which new 2025 appropriations explicitly earmark dedicated maintenance accounts versus construction contracts—those specifics were not fully available in the cited reporting [2] [1].