--- title: "Army barracks repairs could suffer if money shifts to border, top general acknowledges" description: "If money is pulled from barracks upkeep, the Army would make fewer repairs and renovations, said Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George." date: "2025-06-05" modified: "2025-06-05" authors: - name: "Jeff Schogol" job_title: "Senior Pentagon Reporter" link: "https://taskandpurpose.com/authors/jeff-schogol/" url: "https://taskandpurpose.com/news/army-barracks-money/" categories: - "Army" - "Field Guide" - "Military Branches" - "Military Life" - "News" tags: - "adsafety" --- # Army barracks repairs could suffer if money shifts to border, top general acknowledges ![Army barracks]() *A proposed plan would fund border operations by diverting money for maintaining Army facilities. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Jason Hull.* The Army’s top leaders faced tough questions from lawmakers on Wednesday about media reports that the Pentagon is shifting $1 billion away from repairing Army barracks to instead fund military operations along the southern border. And if that happens, there will be fewer repairs and renovations to the soldiers’ living quarters next year, the Army’s top general told lawmakers on Wednesday. A source with knowledge of the matter confirmed to Task & Purpose that defense officials are considering shifting money from maintaining barracks and other facilities to conducting operations on the southern border, but no final decision has been made. Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George acknowledged during congressional testimony on Wednesday that the Army would make fewer renovations and repairs if such a shift in funding were made. [Politico Pro]() first reported last month that the Defense Department was considering moving about $1 billion from “Army facilities and sustainment funding” to pay for border operations. [Military.com]() subsequently reported that the Pentagon had notified Congress that it planned to shift money for maintaining and renovating barracks to the border mission as part of a wider plan. “The DOD plans to realign funds to support SWB \[southwest border\] operations,” a U.S. official told Task & Purpose. “Securing the border is among the President’s top priorities. Utilizing DoD funds to support the President’s top priorities underscores Secretary Hegseth’s commitment to spending every dollar wisely.” https://twitter.com/hotscots_app/status/1930290857585803373 During Wednesday’s House Armed Services Committee hearing on the Army’s budget, Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) got into a heated exchange with George on the matter. “Will redirecting $1 billion impact the ability to do the renovations at the barracks — it’s just a yes or no answer,” Carbajal asked George. “Obviously, redirecting has an impact,” George replied. “You have to make choices, congressman.” “So, the answer’s yes,” Carbajal continued. “If we took $1 billion out of barracks, we would be able to fix less barracks,” George said. Also during Wednesday’s hearing, George said he thinks the Army is “overpaying” for some barracks and it could “probably spend our money better” on barracks. George noted that the service had recently [used 3-D printing to build barracks]() at Fort Bliss, Texas. He added that “every installation has different requirements.” Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll told Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) that he would provide her with more information in response to lawmakers’ questions about whether money for barracks would be diverted to border operations. “These issues matter deeply to us,” Driscoll said. “Gen. George is currently a soldier. I was. My daughter is named after a current soldier’s daughter. They live in Army and military housing. I care deeply about this population.” ## The latest on Task & Purpose - **Navy SEAL Team 6 operator will be the military’s new** [**top enlisted leader**]() - **Veterans receiving disability payments might have been** [**underpaid**]()**, IG finds** - **Guam** [**barracks conditions**]() **are ‘baffling,’ Navy admiral says in email** - [**Navy fires**]() **admiral in charge of unmanned systems office after investigation** - **The Pentagon wants troops to change duty stations** [**less often**]() ## Author Jeff Schogol is the senior Pentagon reporter for Task & Purpose. He reports on both the Defense Department as a whole as well as individual services, covering a variety of topics that include personnel, policy, military justice, deployments, and technology. ### Author social links [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]() [Twitter]()