Congress Doles Out An Extra $120 Million To Protect Jet-Setting Trumps

The Secret Service and local police departments get more taxpayer dollars to keep up with the Trumps.

The omnibus spending package passed by Congress this week includes a funding boost for the Secret Service to help keep up with the high cost of protecting the president and his family.

The $1 trillion funding package, signed into law by President Donald Trump on Friday, includes an additional $120 million for presidential security. Roughly $58 million of that is marked for the Secret Service operations and support. The bill also provides for $61 million in reimbursements to local law enforcement for costs associated with protecting the Trumps when they are at their residences in Manhattan and Palm Beach, Florida.

An additional $73 million is budgeted for procurements, construction and improvements for “for necessary expenses for presidential security.”

The increased funding likely comes as a relief to the Secret Service, which has been stretched thin by the president’s frequent travel and the first family’s atypical living arrangement. Trump’s sprawling family, including his four adult children, means the agency is protecting 40 percent more people than it typically would in a non-campaign year.

In March, the Secret Service reportedly requested an additional $60 million in funding for 2018, including $27 million to protect the president’s apartment in Manhattan’s Trump Tower, where first lady Melania Trump and the couple’s son, Barron, still live. The remaining $33 million was requested to cover the president’s travels, as well as trips taken by Vice President Mike Pence and costs of protecting visiting heads of state. That request, The Washington Post reported, was denied.

The New York Times reported last month that a lack of Secret Service resources was forcing many agents to work overtime and spend much more time than usual away from home.

“They are flat-out worn out,” Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) told the Times.

Trump’s presidency has also been expensive for local law enforcement where he visits. From the November election and Inauguration Day, it cost New York City $24 million, or $308,000 per day, to provide security at Trump Tower.

Trump has frequently traveled to his Florida resort, Mar-a-Lago, throughout his presidency. According to CNN, the Palm Beach County Sherriff’s Office has spent $4.5 million in overtime pay due to presidential protection.

This story has been updated to reflect Trump signing the spending bill into law.

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