The Trump administration’s deployment of troops to 6 totally different U.S. cities final 12 months value roughly $496 million by the top of December, in line with estimates launched by the Congressional Price range Workplace this week.
Maintaining Guard forces deployed on the similar ranges as late December might value about $93 million per 30 days going ahead, the nonpartisan workplace estimated.
The Pentagon in June 2025 deployed 700 active-duty Marines and members of the Nationwide Guard to Los Angeles following protests over the administration’s immigration raids. Since then, members of the Nationwide Guard have deployed to Washington, D.C.; Memphis, Tennessee; Portland, Oregon; Chicago, Illinois; and New Orleans, Louisiana. And about 200 members of the Texas Nationwide Guard are on standby for potential home deployments.
The Congressional Price range Workplace (CBO) reviewed all the mobilizations, aside from New Orleans as a result of it is a newer growth, after a request from Democratic senators, together with Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, the rating member of the Senate Price range Committee.
“The American folks need to know what number of tons of of thousands and thousands of their hard-earned {dollars} have been and are being wasted on Trump’s reckless and haphazard deployment of Nationwide Guard troops to Portland and cities throughout the nation,” Merkley mentioned in an announcement.
The Pentagon informed CBS Information it had nothing to offer when requested if it had separate estimates.
The deployment to Los Angeles largely ended final summer time, however 100 members of the Nationwide Guard have been mobilized till the top of the 12 months. As of Jan. 21, they’d returned dwelling.
Authorized challenges prevented members of the Nationwide Guard from finishing up their meant missions in Portland and Chicago, however that doesn’t cut back prices, in line with the CBO, as a result of members “who’re mobilized and awaiting deployment whereas away from their dwelling stations incur basically the identical prices as deployed personnel.” Each of these deployments ended formally on Jan. 21 when the navy introduced the guardsmen had demobilized.
The deployment to D.C., which is predicted to final by a lot of 2026, might value round $55 million per 30 days if the dimensions of the deployment continues at about 2,950 members. As of Thursday, there are 2,677 members of the guard deployed in D.C.
Congressional Price range Workplace
The CBO estimates that, basically, deploying 1,000 members of the Nationwide Guard to any metropolis would value $18 to $21 million per 30 days, relying primarily on the town’s value of residing. The price of persevering with to maintain 200 members of the Texas Nationwide Guard on standby for potential home deployments is estimated to value about $4 million per 30 days.
The foremost prices the CBO checked out included navy pay and advantages like well being care, lodging, meals, and transportation prices. The workplace didn’t anticipate heavy prices for gear for the reason that deployments “seem to primarily contain foot patrols carried out by small models.”
The CBO mentioned the prices of deployments sooner or later are “extremely unsure” as a result of it is arduous to foretell the size or potential authorized challenges which have stopped deployments to some cities.
