Rep. Vasquez Votes Against $70 Billion Slush Fund for ICE, Stands Firm in Call for Real Reforms at DHS

WASHINGTON, D.C. - On April 29, 2026, U.S. Representative Gabe Vasquez (NM-02) stood firm in his call for reforms at the Department of Homeland Security and voted against a resolution that would set the stage for the agency to receive a $70 billion blank check for violent immigration enforcement activities without offsets, guardrails, or reforms. In addition to handing ICE another blank check, this partisan process is likely to fail to provide a single penny to fund vital security agencies like the TSA, Secret Service, FEMA, and Coast Guard.

"ICE doesn't need another blank check to bankroll more violence, mass detention, and assaults on American citizens; this is not how folks want their taxpayer money to be spent," said Vasquez. "New Mexicans want and deserve an immigration system that respects American rights and values and keeps our country safe - not another slush fund with no guardrails and no accountability that will allow for the continued racial profiling of Hispanic people and communities."

S.Con.Res. 33 directs Congress to pass a new bill to give ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) a $70 billion slush fund for the Administration's violent immigration enforcement tactics - which has resulted in the killing of U.S. citizens, mass raids, and tearing apart of families without due process. The resolution would increase the deficit without financial offsets, increasing government spending while failing to address the soaring cost of health care, gas, groceries, utilities, and housing that is making life harder for most New Mexicans.

How We Got Here: DHS has been shut down for over 70 days. Instead of passing the Senate's unanimous, bipartisan bill to fund all DHS agencies except for ICE and CBP (both of which are still funded by the Republican tax law) while negotiations about reasonable ICE reforms continue, House Republicans are choosing to start another partisan reconciliation process. This process intentionally sidesteps bipartisan negotiations, cannot include commonsense reforms like unmasking ICE agents, and will drive up the national debt.

Last summer, ICE received a $75 million blank check under the Republican tax law (H.R. 1), which Republicans in Congress paid for by cutting health care and food assistance programs that make life more affordable for hardworking New Mexicans - all to pay for massive budget increases to ICE and tax breaks for the rich.

This vote builds on Rep. Vasquez's longstanding record of working to build an immigration system that keeps our country safe while living up to our American values:

• On April 6, Rep. Vasquez conducted a Congressional oversight visit at the Camp East Montana ICE detention facility in El Paso, Texas, where the vast majority of detainees had no criminal record.
• In the wake of an ICE agent's killing of Renee Nicole Good - an American citizen and young mother of three - the Congressman led the call for Secretary Noem's impeachment, citing her mismanagement of ICE, failure to support communities like Ruidoso following natural disasters, and improper use of taxpayer funds. He was one of the first 20 Democratic lawmakers to do so.
• The Congressman introduced the Humane Accountability Act, a bill that calls for greater transparency and accountability around immigrant detention and removals by requiring detailed reporting on assaults, deaths, complaints, and other treatment of detainees to Congress.
• Rep. Vasquez voted against the Republican tax law, which granted DHS a $150 billion blank check to pay for mass detentions and deportations, including of American citizens.
• Following the passage of the Republican tax law, Rep. Vasquez led a group of lawmakers from border communities in demanding transparency and accountability around how DHS will spend more than $150 billion in newly allocated taxpayer dollars. The letter to DHS also outlined detailed spending recommendations to ensure DHS allocates funds in a manner that provides American taxpayers a return on their investment by prioritizing public safety, efficiency, and American values.
• The Congressman is leading both parties forward with the New American Immigration Plan, a commonsense immigration plan to secure our borders, boost the U.S. economy, and expand legal pathways - all while living up to our American values.

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