EXCLUSIVE: Rep. Huizenga releases plan to pay ICE and Border Patrol if Democrats shut the government down
If Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries shut down the government at the end of the month, Rep. Bill Huizenga wants to ensure that the people protecting America's border get paid.
While Senate and House Democrats are increasingly agitating for a government shut down at the end of the month, Rep. Bill Huizenga (R., Mich.) has a plan to ensure that the Americans working to secure the border don’t see a pay cut.
Huizenga’s legislation, the Pay Our Homeland Defenders Act of 2026, was obtained exclusively by the Washington Reporter, and, if passed, it will ensure that the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) personnel who defend America’s border don’t see a pay cut in the event of a government shutdown at the end of the month.
“We cannot allow the mission-critical and dangerous work of our ICE Agents, Border Patrol Officers, and DHS law enforcement to be held hostage by Washington gridlock driven by partisan politics,” Huizenga explained. “The Pay Our Homeland Defenders Act recognizes that law enforcement personnel at the Department of Homeland Security shouldn’t have to worry about their family’s next paycheck while bravely securing our borders, cracking down on illegal drug trafficking, and keeping communities across America safe.”
Employees covered under the Huizenga-authored legislation include U.S. Coast Guard members, civilian personnel, and contractors if not otherwise covered by existing law; USCIS Immigration Officers, ICE Deportation Officers, TSA Federal Air Marshals; Transportation Security Officers; HSI Special Agents, ICE Special Agents, U.S. Secret Service Criminal Investigators; Customs and Border Protection Officers; U.S. Border Patrol Agents; Secret Service Police; CBP interdiction; and DHS Aircraft Operators.
In the past, government shutdowns have forced essential homeland security employees to work without pay for days and sometimes weeks. This, Huizenga notes, jeopardizes national security by undermining agents’ morale and readiness.
Following years of an open border under President Joe Biden, Huizenga wants to ensure that President Donald Trump’s work to successfully secure the border isn’t undermined by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) or Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D., N.Y.).
Other lawmakers joining Huizenga in backing the Pay Our Homeland Defenders Act are Reps. Jen Kiggans (R., Va.), Brad Finstad (R., Minn.), Lauren Boebert (R., Colo.), Aaron Bean (R., Fla.), Stephanie Bice (R., Okla.), and Claudia Tenney (R., N.Y.).
Kiggans recently told the Reporter in an interview in Virginia Beach that she wants to avoid a “Schumer shutdown” and that a short term continuing resolution will “gives[] us a little bit more time to get the actual budget passed.”