Governor Reynolds has announced that eight troopers and two sergeants from the Iowa Department of Public Safety (DPS) will deploy March 31, 2024 to Texas in support of Operation Lone Star and the Texas Department of Public Safety. The deployment will last 28 days and conclude on April 27, 2024.
The Iowa National Guard will deploy on two missions to support Operation Lone Star. The first deployment will begin April 1, 2024 and conclude May 3, 2024 with 110 personnel supporting the Texas Military Department’s security objectives. The second deployment will begin April 1, 2024 and conclude September 30, 2024 with 5 personnel providing ground vehicle maintenance and public affairs support.
Gov. Kim Reynolds released the following statement regarding the state’s support of Operation Lone Star:
“President Biden and his Administration have failed to protect the sovereignty of our borders and the safety of the American people. What Texas faces is nothing short of an invasion with historic levels of illegal immigrants and illicit drugs entering our country. Now, every state is a border state, and with that comes a duty to protect the people of Iowa.
“These deployments will help Texas on the frontlines of this crisis. I am grateful to all the members of the Iowa Department of Public Safety and the Iowa National Guard for volunteering for the deployment. It’s a testament to their leadership and willingness to serve.”
All costs will be covered by federal funding allocated to Iowa from the American Rescue Plan. States are given flexibility in how this funding can be used provided it supports the provision of government services.
Do we want to get ahead of the next question on costs and just provide a statement to the effect of “The combined deployment of DPS and NG resources is expected to cost approximately $2.13M and will be covered by federal one-time funding allocated to Iowa from the American Rescue Plan.” Alternatively, we can just continue to respond that costs won’t be known until the deployment concludes later this year… [N[1]
