At the request of the federal government, approximately 125 members of the South Dakota National Guard are being sent to the southern border between the United States and Mexico.
The soldiers are members of the South Dakota National Guard’s 1742nd Transportation Company, stationed in Sioux Falls and Flandreau. These soldiers will be deployed for up to nine to twelve months and will be in a federal pay status.
The guard members will provide non-law enforcement support to U.S. customs agents as part of the government’s Southwest Border mission. The Southwest Border mission involves security along the Mexican border in California, Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. The request for South Dakota guard members came from the US Department of Homeland Security and the National Guard Bureau. About 3,000 Guard members from several states are involved in this federal mission.
This deployment is in addition to the roughly 50 active duty soldiers Gov. Kristi Noem said she’d send (June 29, 2021) that will be paid for using a $1 million donation from a private foundation based in Franklin, TN. The Willis and Reba Johnson Foundation gave the money directly to the state of South Dakota. Noem says she welcomes any such donations to help alleviate the cost to South Dakota taxpayers.
For security reasons, information about either deployment will not be provided.
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