Homan, lawmakers signal cooperation on 'overlooked' northern border amid migrant spike: 'Same vision'

Reps. Mike Kelly, R-Pa., and Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., have written to Homan, congratulating him on his new role as border czar in the new Trump administration. 

"As this new administration begins, we, as co-chairs of the Northern Border Security Caucus, want to highlight the importance of protecting the Northern border, which as you well know has been overlooked considering the ongoing crisis at our Southwest border," they write to Homan, in a letter obtained by Fox News Digital.

While the overall numbers of migrant encounters are vastly outnumbered by the southern border, with just under 200,000 encounters for FY 2024, it has seen a sharp increase in numbers during the Biden administration. In FY 23, there were more apprehensions than the prior 10 years combined.

"The Northern border has faced an unprecedented rise in encounters during the last administration with FY2024 encounters rising nearly 82% over FY2022. The number of unaccompanied children encountered skyrocketed 262% in the same period," the lawmakers say. "The Swanton Sector, where a Border Patrol agent was shot and killed on January 20th, has seen an outrageous 1,720% increase in encounters from FY2022 to FY2024."

Kelly and Zinke announced the reintroduction of the caucus earlier this month for the 119th Congress. The 24-member caucus calls for secure borders and looks to raise awareness of the immigration issues facing the states at the border with Canada.

Telling Homan that he has made it clear that he shares "our same vision for a more safe and secure Northern border," they invited him to a meeting with the caucus on how "Congress and the new Administration can work together to secure the Northern Border."

In response to a request for comment from Fox News Digital, Homan said he will "engage with them ASAP on ways to secure the northern border to decrease illegal crossings of aliens and narcotics and address the national security vulnerabilities."