That bill with the shiny name, The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, might sound like political theater, but it has some serious implications for how we secure schools, public spaces, and workplaces.
So I sat with it for a bit. Dug into the details. And I want to share a few thoughts with you, not as a legal analyst, not as someone selling you anything, but as someone who’s spent years helping organizations protect people and prepare for what’s coming.
Here’s what stood out:
The bill directs $170 billion into immigration enforcement and border surveillance infrastructure, including drones, facial recognition, license‑plate readers, vetting technologies, and detention center expansion. ICE funding is expected to rise from roughly $10 billion to over $100 billion by 2029, with $6.2 billion specifically earmarked for border technology systems. The funding also includes $673 million for biometric systems like facial recognition and fingerprint readers, and $140 million for over 200 new surveillance towers, with CBP planning >900 towers by September 2026. That’s federal spending now—but as usual, federal priorities will trickle down. Schools, corporate campuses, and community spaces will feel the pressure to “keep up.”
That doesn’t mean panic. But it does mean this:
If you’re going to collect more data, you need to be prepared to secure more data. Biometric systems. Video feeds. Smart sensors. All of it becomes part of your risk footprint. Too many organizations still treat that data like it’s just another file folder.
OBBBA slashes federal support for healthcare and social programs like Medicaid and SNAP, repeals existing student loan programs (Grad PLUS program), caps federal loan borrowing, and imposes new eligibility restrictions, all while restructuring student aid and imposing institutional accountability on colleges and universities. If your organization touches federal dollars: education, transportation, healthcare, etc., this is not hypothetical. That’s now oversight, real‑time coordination, and policy audits, including expectations around data‑sharing with DHS or Education.
A provision in the X-draft sought to impose a 10-year moratorium on state-level AI regulation, effectively blocking foreign-backed AI or smart-security providers from federal programs. But that deal collapsed after Senators opposed it, leaving questions about vendor eligibility unresolved. Many of those shiny security tools are built overseas. If you’re using tools that seem fine on paper, now’s the time to ask: Who built them? Where’s the data going? What happens if funding depends on compliance? Vendor due diligence is no longer just an IT issue. It’s now core to resilience.
OBBBA drives massive investment into energy modernization, EV chargers, smart buildings, and smart HVAC systems, while simultaneously coordinating political incentives to accelerate their deployment, and expanding digitally connected physical systems with new access points across campuses and facilities. These aren’t just infrastructure projects; they unleash additional digital attack vectors. If these systems aren’t properly isolated, segmented, or monitored, they’re open doors.
This bill is going to shape how the U.S. thinks about security and surveillance for the next decade. It’s not just about borders. It’s about precedent.
And for schools, companies, and public institutions, it creates a paradox:
We’re being told to level up security. But if we do it blindly, we may actually increase our risk.
At WorldSafe, we’ve always said that real security starts with clarity.
Know what you’re protecting. Know where your gaps are. Know who you’re trusting with access to your people, your data, and your systems.
If that’s something your team’s wrestling with — or just wants a second set of eyes on — reach out. Let’s have a real conversation about what this means for your environment, and how we can help you stay ready.