DHS Spends More Than $144 Million on Weapons for Immigration Agents in Trump’s First Year
By Theodore Bunker | Thursday, February 19, 2026 at 5:07 PM EST
Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., on Thursday released a report finding that the Department of Homeland Security committed more than $144 million in the first year of President Donald Trump’s administration to guns, ammunition, and other weapons for immigration enforcement, which the report described as a sharp increase in weapon-related contracting.
The report, which Schiff’s office said reviewed federal contracting data from January 20, 2025, to January 20, 2026, found Immigration and Customs Enforcement quadrupled its weapons spending commitments compared with the previous year, while Customs and Border Protection doubled its contracts for weapons purchases.
“Just in 2025, ICE and CBP have together placed orders to purchase thousands of new high-powered lethal weapons at taxpayer expense,” the report stated.
Among the examples cited was a September 2025 order valued at approximately $9.1 million from Geissele Automatics for “precision long guns and accessories” for ICE, according to the report and the award description posted on USAspending.gov. The report also highlighted more than $3.8 million in handgun orders from Glock Inc. placed by CBP in late 2025 and early 2026, as well as over $30 million for ammunition and more than $25 million for less-lethal weapons and crowd-control devices, including tear gas and Tasers.
The report was released amid heightened scrutiny of immigration enforcement tactics following two fatal shootings of U.S. citizens in Minneapolis in January that drew calls from state and local officials and some members of Congress for a full investigation into the federal operation and use of force. Schiff stated in a separate announcement that Americans have watched “tragic and fatal consequences” from what he called unchecked immigration enforcement, arguing the federal government should not spend taxpayer money to further arm immigration agents.
“Americans across the country have been witnessing the results of an unchecked immigration enforcement policy that has led to tragic and fatal consequences,” Schiff said. “This report exposes how DHS has set in motion a massive surge in spending to add even more dangerous weapons to ICE and CBP’s arsenal.”
The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday, though the department has previously stated that firearms purchases are routine for law enforcement agencies. The contracting figures cited by Schiff come as DHS is preparing to deploy billions of dollars authorized in a sweeping tax and spending law signed by President Donald Trump on July 4, 2025, which the administration and outside budget analysts say provides an additional $165 billion for DHS.
In announcing the measure’s signing, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said the law’s DHS funding would support the administration’s immigration enforcement priorities, calling it “a win for law and order and the safety and security of the American people.” CBP and ICE have stated that their agents face growing risks during enforcement actions, while critics have pushed for tighter oversight, clearer identification of officers, and stronger guardrails on the use of force in operations that sometimes involve heavily armed tactical teams. The report also pointed to spending on ammunition and less-lethal munitions as evidence that DHS is building capacity for crowd-control and higher-intensity operations inside U.S. cities as the Trump administration expands interior enforcement.
