A new report by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), released Jan. 28, provides the first comprehensive accounting of the federal government’s push to utilize military assets for domestic law enforcement. The nonpartisan analysis, the response to a request for information from Senate Budget Ranking Member Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), reveals that between June 2025 and December 2025, the cost of mobilizing National Guard and active-duty Marine Corps personnel to six major American cities totaled approximately $496 million.
The report highlights the financial burden is ongoing and significant. If the administration maintains the troop levels present at the end of 2025, the CBO estimates the recurring cost to the federal budget will be $93 million per month, while deploying just 1,000 National Guard personnel to a U.S. city in 2026 would cost $18 million to $21 million per month, depending largely on local cost-of-living differences.
Scope of operations
The half-billion-dollar price tag covers operations that began in mid-2025. According to the report, the administration deployed forces to Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., Memphis, Portland, and Chicago. While a deployment to New Orleans also occurred, it was initiated late in the year, so the CBO didn’t include it in the report. This means the real cost of federal troop deployment was higher than calculated, but didn’t stretch all the way back to June.
The report also highlighted logistical complexities in the movement of troops. For instance, the administration kept 200 National Guard personnel mobilized in Texas even after they had concluded their operations in Chicago, contributing to the total expenditure.
Future uncertainty
While the CBO provided a baseline for current monthly spending, the agency emphasized predicting the final bill for 2026 is difficult. The CBO described the future costs as “highly uncertain,” citing the unpredictability of the mission’s scale and duration.
Two major factors complicate these projections. First, the administration’s policies regarding the size and location of deployments are subject to change. Second, the federal government is facing significant legal headwinds. The report notes that legal challenges have already successfully stopped deployments to some cities, altering the operational landscape and the resulting financial obligations.
As of January 2026, the baseline suggests that without a change in policy or a court order, the federal government will continue to spend nearly $100 million monthly to maintain the current footprint. However, should the administration choose to expand operations, the CBO’s formula creates a clear expectation: every additional battalion-sized element of 1,000 troops will add another $18 million to the monthly ledger.
For this story, Fortune journalists used generative AI as a research tool. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing.
