Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., left, advocated for funding for more than 20 local projects. (Mariam Zuhaib/Associated Press file)
Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., left, advocated for funding for more than 20 local projects. (Mariam Zuhaib/Associated Press file)Mariam Zuhaib

U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., is lauding the Biden administration’s request for an emergency increase in funding for U.S.-Mexico border security.

The president requested $4 billion in border security funding for the country’s Fiscal Year 2024 supplemental budget.

Here is a breakdown of how that money would be spent, according to a news release from Heinrich’s office:

$2.7 billion for the Department of Homeland Security, including $2.2 billion for border management, shelter and services mutual aid reimbursement, $416 million for counter-fentanyl activities like nonintrusive inspection system deployment.$800 million for the Department of State to identify root causes of immigration that will help Administration understand the forces driving families and children to flee dangerous conditions at home.$350 million for Department of Health and Human Services counter-fentanyl activities to include prevention, treatment, harm reduction, and recovery support.$100 million for the Department of Labor to assist with child labor investigations.$59 million for Executive Office for Immigration Review immigration judge teams; and fentanyl testing, tracing, network targeting, and data systems.

Heinrich said the funding shows the Biden administration is taking the border situation seriously.

“By investing in resources that will enhance border security to repair our nation’s immigration system and ensuring wildland firefighters receive the living wages they deserve, this supplemental request reflects the kind of investments Congress should be making to protect the health and safety of all New Mexicans,” Heinrich said in the release.

“I’m especially pleased to see that the Administration is pursuing a first-of-its-kind comprehensive fentanyl tracking system that I called for in the Senate’s Commerce, Justice, and Science Appropriations bill. This system will be critical to better understanding the movement of illicit drugs and more effectively combating the fentanyl drug epidemic that’s devastating our communities.”