DHS-related immigration surges: what official figures show for spending in Minneapolis, Chicago, and Los Angeles
Federal deployments drew competing cost estimates as cities sought clarity on who paid for what
Public accounting of Department of Homeland Security (DHS)-related immigration enforcement surges in Minneapolis, Chicago and Los Angeles has produced sharply different dollar figures, reflecting a basic challenge: local governments, federal agencies and budget analysts often count different categories of costs.
In Minneapolis, city leaders released a preliminary impact assessment on Feb. 13, 2026, estimating at least $203.1 million in one-month “impact” tied to Operation Metro Surge. The figure was framed broadly, combining community and economic effects alongside municipal expenses, rather than presenting a single federal spending total.
The Minneapolis estimate describes citywide impacts and relief needs, including disruption-related losses and strains on city operations, not a line-item DHS invoice.
Minneapolis: impact estimate paired with documented city operational costs
Within the Minneapolis assessment, officials also identified city-incurred operational expenses: more than $6 million in city staff payroll, police overtime and related operational costs in a single month. The city described the overall financial consequences as potentially increasing if the surge’s effects persist, while emphasizing that its totals were preliminary.
Separately, national reporting has described a weekly cost estimate for the Minneapolis deployment, but that figure has not been published as a comprehensive federal accounting of DHS spending for the operation.
Chicago: federalized National Guard deployment costed by federal budget analysts
For Chicago, a clearer federal cost figure exists for a related element of immigration operations: the federalized National Guard deployment. A Congressional Budget Office analysis cited by multiple outlets placed Chicago’s Guard deployment at $21 million for the October-to-December 2025 period. The estimate accounted for pay and benefits, lodging, food and transportation.
Reporting on the deployment also noted that Guard members in Chicago did not participate in immigration enforcement after a court injunction, and that the formal end of the mobilization extended into January 2026, adding additional costs.
Chicago National Guard deployment: $21 million (federal cost estimate for the deployment period).
Average daily cost per Guard member reported at roughly the mid-$500 range.
Los Angeles: competing figures reflect different time windows and accounting methods
In Los Angeles, cost estimates have varied by source and methodology. A Pentagon estimate presented in congressional testimony in mid-2025 placed the cost of a 60-day deployment at about $134 million, covering travel, housing, food and other incidental expenses. Later public breakdowns from California’s state government put the total near $120 million for a deployment involving thousands of Guard members and Marines.
In addition, a CBO-referenced figure reported by outlets covering the multi-city Guard deployments placed Los Angeles at $193 million for the Guard component in that accounting.
What the numbers do and do not represent
Across the three cities, the available figures capture different slices of the same policy response: municipal impact assessments (Minneapolis), federal budget estimates for military mobilizations (Chicago and Los Angeles), and executive-branch cost projections (Los Angeles). None of the published figures functions as a complete, standardized ledger of total DHS spending in each city, making direct comparisons difficult without a uniform federal reporting framework.