Cuellar: CBP border wall construction to be halted this week

Following an executive order issued last week by President Biden, U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar announced in a Monday news release U.S. Customs and Border Protection contractors have been notified of a “pause” on border wall construction activities.

The pause will only affect projects self-executed by CBP and will occur Wednesday, Jan. 27.

“While CBP cannot speak on behalf of the U.S. Department of Defense or U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, it is expected that DOD and USACE are undertaking parallel action on CBP-funded border wall projects that they are overseeing,” Cuellar stated in a Monday news release.

The pause is occurring within a week after Biden’s executive order to end President Trump’s national emergency declaration along the southern border of the country to build new barriers in the area. As part of the order, funds diverted to border wall construction will be redirected elsewhere.

Cuellar, who previously suggested the federal government invest in technology instead of walls to protect the border, called the notification a “promising step.”

“However, our work continues. I remain steadfast in my commitment to working with the new administration until every border wall contract is terminated and all construction crews leave our border communities,” Cuellar stated.