WASHINGTON, DC — Today, Congressman Donald Norcross (NJ-01) and Congressman Herb Conaway (NJ-03), Members of the House Armed Services Committee, announced that they received a response letter from the Department of Homeland Security after requesting more information on the Trump Administration’s intent to house undocumented immigrants at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst. The letter states that there is currently no approved construction plan or timeline for housing undocumented immigrants at the joint base.

“The Trump Administration’s ongoing disregard for due process and humane treatment of undocumented immigrants has required us to press repeatedly for answers and fulfill our congressional oversight responsibilities,” the lawmakers said. “While we acknowledge that the Department of Homeland Security has finally responded to our questions, we will continue to monitor for any further developments regarding plans to house undocumented immigrants at the joint base. Our priority is to uphold the human rights standards that these individuals deserve and to ensure that plans to house undocumented immigrants at the joint base do not interfere with military readiness. We will continue to keep a close watch on any changes to this proposal.”

After learning about the Trump Administration’s intent to house undocumented immigrants at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, the Congressmen visited the joint base to conduct their congressional duty of oversight and sent a letter to Secretary Hegseth, Secretary Noem, and Acting Director Lyons, demanding clarification and expressing opposition to the plan. The deadline for the federal agencies to respond to the letter was August 15, 2025.

On September 29, the Members received a letter from Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Hemispheric Affairs, M. Roosevelt Ditlevson, in response to the letter they sent to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in July. The letter can be read here.

Although the response letter from Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem, was postmarked for September 29^th, the Members did not receive the letter until November 17^th. The letter can be read here.