Federal Budget Office Estimates Ongoing Troop Deployment Will Cost US Cities Over Half Billion Dollars
The latest financial figures have revealed that President Donald Trump's decision to deploy thousands of National Guard soldiers and active-duty marines in major American cities has come at a staggering cost. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the ongoing operations will shell out nearly $500 million by the end of 2025.
Since June last year, Trump activated over 10,000 troops in six US cities, including Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Memphis, Portland, Chicago, and New Orleans. The Administration's reasoning behind these deployments was to combat crime and safeguard federal immigration enforcement. However, not all operations have remained unchanged throughout the year; several cities suspended their National Guard deployments by December 2025.
The CBO estimates that maintaining an ongoing deployment of around 5,000 troops will cost approximately $93 million per month in 2026. Meanwhile, new estimates suggest that sending 1,000 National Guards to a single city would result in expenses ranging from $18 million to $21 million annually, depending on the local cost of living.
Washington D.C., the most expensive operation with over 2,950 troops activated by the President, spent nearly half a billion dollars since last year. The CBO projects that maintaining these troops will drain the city's budget by $55 million each month until the end of 2026.
The deployment in Los Angeles cost around $193 million per month during its peak phase, with only a fraction of the total deployed personnel remaining active by December 2025. In contrast, Portland and Chicago saw much lower expenses of $26 million and $21 million monthly respectively, with smaller numbers of troops being activated.
As Trump has continued to push for his enforcement policies, some National Guard units remain in Texas at an estimated cost of $4 million a month. The deployment in Memphis also continues, albeit with significantly fewer personnel, while New Orleans saw the activation of 350 National Guards members at an annual expense of $6 million.
The latest financial figures have revealed that President Donald Trump's decision to deploy thousands of National Guard soldiers and active-duty marines in major American cities has come at a staggering cost. According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the ongoing operations will shell out nearly $500 million by the end of 2025.
Since June last year, Trump activated over 10,000 troops in six US cities, including Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Memphis, Portland, Chicago, and New Orleans. The Administration's reasoning behind these deployments was to combat crime and safeguard federal immigration enforcement. However, not all operations have remained unchanged throughout the year; several cities suspended their National Guard deployments by December 2025.
The CBO estimates that maintaining an ongoing deployment of around 5,000 troops will cost approximately $93 million per month in 2026. Meanwhile, new estimates suggest that sending 1,000 National Guards to a single city would result in expenses ranging from $18 million to $21 million annually, depending on the local cost of living.
Washington D.C., the most expensive operation with over 2,950 troops activated by the President, spent nearly half a billion dollars since last year. The CBO projects that maintaining these troops will drain the city's budget by $55 million each month until the end of 2026.
The deployment in Los Angeles cost around $193 million per month during its peak phase, with only a fraction of the total deployed personnel remaining active by December 2025. In contrast, Portland and Chicago saw much lower expenses of $26 million and $21 million monthly respectively, with smaller numbers of troops being activated.
As Trump has continued to push for his enforcement policies, some National Guard units remain in Texas at an estimated cost of $4 million a month. The deployment in Memphis also continues, albeit with significantly fewer personnel, while New Orleans saw the activation of 350 National Guards members at an annual expense of $6 million.
. but seriously tho, $500 million is a crazy amount for just "combating crime" and "safeguarding immigration enforcement". don't get me wrong, these are important issues, but can't they find more efficient solutions that won't bankrupt our cities? also, what's up with the inconsistency in numbers? one city is spending half a billion and another is getting by on $6 million? it just doesn't add up 
.
This is getting crazy! I mean, I get that Trump wants to boost crime numbers or something but $500m by 2025? That's just insane 
the US gov is breaking the bank over these troop deployments 
i mean, $500 million by 2025? that's wild 
and what's even crazier is that some cities are seeing expenses ranging from $18 mil to $21 mil per year for just 1k troops 
like, can't we do more with our tax dollars? 
#BudgetBlowout #TroopDeposits #FiscalResponsibility
. I mean, come on, $500 million by the end of 2025? That's like, half a billion bucks! 
. I'm not buying the "safety and security" excuse either, this is just more money being funneled into the pockets of politicians and contractors 
. Like, one city could see an expense of $18 million a year for 1,000 National Guards, while another sees half a billion in expenses? That's not strategy, that's just a wild card 
.
How can we even be expected to cover that on our tax returns?! 
. Those $93 million monthly costs might seem steep, but is it really worth the risk of having to deploy troops in the first place? Meanwhile, some cities are getting away with way lower expenses, so there's gotta be a balance to find here