Sep 18, 2019 - Politics & Policy

Pentagon halts 3 planned border projects over lack of funding

A Customs and Border Protection helicopter flies over the U.S.-Mexico border wall on April 5 in Mexicali, Mexico. Photo: Luis Boza/VIEWpress/Corbis via Getty Images

The Defense Department halted 3 planned "border barrier" construction projects on Sept. 13 after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) determined there were insufficient savings to move forward, per a court filing obtained by Politico this week.

The big picture: The USACE overestimated how much money would be available for these projects after the Pentagon redirected $2.5 billion in July for border wall construction. These projects would have been funded with money "left over" from the $2.5 billion, per Politico.

  • Green-lit in late August, the plans would have supplied "roughly 20 additional miles of border fence, roads, and lighting" in Arizona and California, Politico reports.
  • The USACE determined in August that "lower-than expected contract costs may yield sufficient savings" for these proposals, per the court filing.

Go deeper: Pentagon halts 127 projects to fund $3.6 billion of Trump's border wall

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