Politics & Finances

Texas Tax-Withholding Error Costs Deployed Border Troops Thousands

Texas Tax-Withholding Error Costs Deployed Border Troops Thousands

Thanks to a tax-withholding error, border patrol troops deployed as part of Texas Governor Greg Abbott's (R) Operation Lone Star now owe hundreds or thousands of dollars in taxes.

Operation Lone Star is a joint mission between the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Military Department. It was launched in March 2021 purportedly to combat illegal immigration and the illegal drug trade along the southern border between Texas and Mexico. 

The controversial program has faced its fair share of backlash as it approaches a $4 billion price tag

Now, thousands of National Guard troops deployed to patrol the border as part of the initiative have discovered that they owe huge sums of federal income taxes.

The Texas Tribune recently reported on the state's error, noting that the Texas Military Department has acknowledged that the payroll system they use failed to withhold the proper amount of federal taxes from paychecks. One frustrated Army officer told the outlet, "I was wondering why I was making so much. Wow. Just wow."

In addition to this latest blunder, Operation Lone Star has faced one disaster after another. Earlier this week, the Texas Military Department identified Army National Guard Spc. Demetrio Torres, 20, as the 10th service member to die while assigned to Operation Lone Star.

The young man passed away from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The Tribune shared that the deaths include four suicides, two accidental shootings, a motorcycle accident, a soldier who "died of a blood clot after a long security shift in July amid a record heat wave," and another who drowned while heroically saving two migrants. 

Abbott's initiative has also recently come under fire for costing taxpayers over $14 million to charter buses to relocate migrants to Democratic-run cities like New York City.

What do you think about Operation Lone Star? If your family has been impacted by this recent tax blunder, match with a Texas tax expert who can help you now.

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Rebekah Barton

Rebekah Barton

Rebekah's search engine optimization career began completely by accident as a college student. Over the course of her career so far, she has "grown up" with the SEO industry, from writing content while juggling classes to managing her own teams of writers and overseeing SEO strategy in subsequent roles. She is excited to bring her passion for high-quality content to CountingWorks, Inc.

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