Austin— The Texas Department of Transportation is going to pay nearly $ 25 million – about $ 500 million – for the construction of a nearly 2-mile (3.2-kilometer) concrete barrier along the border at Eagle Pass, offering the first taste of the possible cost of a border wall funded by the state and ordered by Governor Greg Abbott.
Under the bill, the state will also install a temporary fence near the right side along State Loop 480, which the Department of Public Safety has designed in an area where traffic is high for illegal immigration. The region has experienced an increase in illegal border crossings in recent years.
The fence, the construction that Abbott has boasted online, cost the state $ 280,000. The contract also includes the cleaning of vegetation around the area where the barrier will be built.
The remainder of the $ 25 million will go to a concrete barrier along the same right-hand side that can be permanent or relocated if necessary, said Ryan LaFontaine, a spokesman for the Department of Transportation. The work is scheduled to finish in December.
The resources for the wall will be taken from the maintenance budget of the Department of Transportation. LaFontaine said the department expects to be reimbursed but has no information about where the money could come from.
Renae Eze, a spokeswoman for Abbott, said the construction is part of three initiatives that were carried out in conjunction with Operation Lone Star, which is the governor’s effort to secure the border. “A border fence will be built, using strategic barriers and a temporary fence will be erected.”
The Department of Transportation contract, he said, is part of the effort to build strategic barriers.
“The $ 25 million contract was awarded to a company to build a border barrier on state land that the Texas Department of Public Safety identified as a high-traffic area for illegal immigration,” he said.
“The Department of Public Safety is also collaborating with engineers from the Texas Military Department to identify locations for temporary fencing as a deterrent to illegal immigrants entering Texas.”
“The governor’s announcement has made it clear that they are separate and unique projects as part of his overall border security plan to protect Texans and our state,” he said.
Abbott announced its plans to build a state-funded border wall in June after declaring the state a border disaster due to increased illegal immigration.
That month, Abbott said it would transfer $ 250 million from the 2023 Texas Department of Criminal Justice budget to the Texas Facilities Commission to be used as a “down payment” for the border wall. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice also said it expects that amount will be reimbursed to them.
Abbott acknowledged that the wall, which it believes could span hundreds of miles, could cost more than $ 250 million but said the state would fund it. It also launched a state fundraising campaign, which has raised approximately $ 936,000 from private donations in the past two months.
The cost that the Texas Department of Transportation is incurring to build the concrete barrier at Eagle Pass, the $ 250 million could build approximately 20 miles of the wall. Texas has about 1,000 miles along the border with Mexico where no barrier has been built.
Abbott has moved quickly to erect what he has called “the border barrier.” By July 20, the state had already placed a temporary fence in Eagle Pass that could cause state authorities to arrest migrants crossing on charges of criminal trespass – another part of its effort to decrease migrant crossings. .
This accelerated construction was made possible through an emergency contracting process by the Department of Transportation, which expedited the award of the contract and reduced the number of proposals that the state must consider before awarding the final proposal.
The rest of the border wall is likely to take longer to build. Abbott ordered the Texas Facilities Commission to hire a program manager to oversee the procurement of contracts.
Hiring for that position is following state purchasing requirements, and application submission will wrap up August 20. More than one program manager could be hired.
After that, that person will determine how many miles of the fence will be built and how much it will cost. The hiring and construction process could take months, at least, if the state’s regular purchasing requirements are followed.
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