The RecordExhibit 83
Waiving dozens of laws to wall off Big Bend
Mixed rulings means: Courts have ruled both ways on parts of it.
Homeland Security waived dozens of environmental, historic preservation and land laws to build border barriers and roads across Texas's Big Bend region, later extending the waivers to the national park itself.
What happened
The February waiver called the region an area of high illegal entry, but a coalition opposing the wall points out that Border Patrol made only 151 apprehensions across the entire 517-mile sector in January 2026. After public backlash, the border agency's commissioner said in May there would be no wall in Big Bend; about a week later the agency awarded a $1.7 billion construction contract for the region, and a June waiver covered the national park. Ranchers, sheriffs, former park superintendents and environmental groups oppose the project, much of which would be built on private land. Opponents say bulldozing began in August.
Where it stands
On Oct. 2, 2026, Judge Kathleen Cardone, a George W. Bush appointee, halted barrier construction across the more than 500-mile Big Bend sector, finding opponents likely to prove some of the waivers invalid. Earlier that week, Judge Orlando Garcia declined to issue an emergency order in a separate case. Six lawsuits have been filed.
The administration's side
The administration says barriers are needed even in remote areas to achieve what it calls operational control of the border, meaning no unauthorized crossings. Border officials have said current plans do not include a 30-foot wall inside the national park, and the agency is considering scaling the project back. Administrations of both parties have used these waivers to speed wall construction.
Sources
Permanent link: https://unredactedrecord.com/e/bigbend/