In the Fiscal Year 2019 budget, the administration’s request includes $47.5 billion for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including $1.5 billion added to the DHS budget at the last minute as part of the White House’s budget “addendum.” An additional $6.7 billion for the Disaster Relief Fund (DRF) is requested separately.
That $47.5 billion is a $3.5 billion or 7.3 percent increase from the current estimated 2018 level. DHS is one of only three federal departments whose funding is significantly increased in the President’s new proposal (the others are Defense and Veterans Affairs).
The newest of the federal departments, established in 2002, DHS combines 22 different federal agencies into a single, integrated agency. In addition to preventing terrorism and enhancing our national security, DHS is tasked with providing border and port security, administers immigration laws, provides disaster response, and coordinates federal cybersecurity initiatives.
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