Representative Andy Biggs is pointing to newly released border data as evidence of changing immigration trends, highlighting a significant drop in illegal crossings along the U.S.-Mexico border.
“Promises made, promises kept,” Andy Biggs said in response to the White House announcement that illegal border crossings have fallen to the lowest levels in 5 decades.
According to a report from the BBC, citing federal data obtained by CBS News, U.S. Border Patrol agents recorded approximately 238,000 apprehensions of individuals crossing the southern border illegally in fiscal year 2025, the lowest annual figure since 1970.
Arizona’s border sectors saw some of the most significant changes. Preliminary data from U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows that illegal crossings in the Tucson and Yuma sectors dropped by over 70% between January and February 2025.
Trump’s Return
The decline comes during the early months of President Donald Trump’s return to office. Since January, his administration has implemented several stricter immigration policies.
These include shutting down the U.S Customs and Border Protection for asylum appointments, increasing deportation flights, and promoting a new plan to remove more people who are in the country illegally.
In February 2025, Border Patrol reported about 8,300 illegal crossings, down from over 47,300 in December. That’s the lowest monthly number since the year 2000.
Bigg’s Recognition
Experts say the numbers had already begun to decline at the end of 2024, partly due to new enforcement efforts by both U.S. and Mexican officials.
However, the significant drop this year has drawn attention from lawmakers like Biggs, who has often pushed for stronger border security.
With Arizona at the forefront of immigration issues, Biggs says the recent data shows that stricter policies are making a difference.
