This material was originally published by Reform Austin.

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As unauthorized border crossings in Texas hit record lows this year, many Department of Public Safety (DPS) troopers continue to log extensive overtime hours under Governor Greg Abbott’s multibillion-dollar border security initiative, Operation Lone Star (OLS) — in some cases, more than doubling their annual salaries.

Houston Chronicle reporter, Benjamin Wermund, said the state is on track to spend about $77 million on overtime for DPS officers assigned to the border crackdown this year.

“(This) would be more than it spent on the operation in 2023, which was kind of when crossings were peaking and there was a takeover in Shelby Park in Eagle Pass and sort of at the height of the operation,” he said in an interview with Texas Standard . “It’s not too much more, I think a few million. But it stood out to us just given the shift in border crossings, that it would be that high still.”

Launched in 2021, Operation Lone Star was Abbott’s answer to what he described as federal inaction on immigration enforcement. The program originally focused on deploying state police and National Guard troops to the border, in order to arrest migrants on state charges like trespassing. Since then, it’s grown into a broad, high-budget operation targeting drug trafficking, human smuggling, and other crimes the state considers connected to border security.

Troopers working and charging overtime

While the number of border crossings has decreased, many troopers are still working extended hours under OLS, collecting substantial overtime pay in the process. In June, nearly 1 in 10 troopers were projected to double their annual pay through overtime. More than 100 officers received at least one monthly overtime payment of $10,000 or more.

For comparison, the average DPS trooper earned about $26,000 in overtime in 2020, before OLS began. By 2022, that number had jumped to $41,000, with an increase of 57%. In 2023 and 2024, the trend accelerated. Some lieutenants gained more than $300,000 last year and several troopers were paid over $200,000 annually, with more than half of that income coming from overtime alone, as reported by the Houston Chronicle . 

Absence on the border

Despite the high overtime payouts, residents in border towns like Eagle Pass report the decline of troopers in the area.

“There used to be a DPS every five miles. Now you won’t see them. They’re all gone,” said Jessie Fuentes, a local business owner quoted in the Houston Chronicle . A city park once used as a staging area for troopers is now quiet and open to the public again.

DPS officials say the mission has evolved. Rather than stationing officers along the riverbanks, the agency is now focusing on statewide investigations, targeting narcotic smuggling, human and weapons trafficking.

“It is true, you no longer see troopers simply stationed along the riverbanks — that is not where they are needed at this time,” said a DPS spokesperson.

Extended extra hours

DPS does not have a limit on how much extra time an officer can work, unless they hold positions that legally require rest, such as aircraft pilots or boat captains.

As a result, some troopers are working nearly every day for weeks, sometimes logging 96 hours of overtime in a single month. Lt. Maria Rodriguez-Solis reported $32,000 in overtime over five weeks, taking only two days off during that period.

The agency argues that the overtime structure helps recruit and retain officers, especially in rural or under-resourced areas. Some lawmakers have suggested raising base pay instead, warning that relying on endless overtime is unsustainable for officers and their families.

“People can’t maintain that pace — physically or mentally or with family,” State Sen. Charles Perry said during a budget hearing.

Impact on local police forces

The financial appeal of OLS has also pulled officers away from local law enforcement agencies. In Eagle Pass, the police department lost five officers to DPS since the border operation started, now holding 70 officers.

“It’s beyond competitive,” said Humberto Garza, the department’s spokesman, to the Houston Chronicle . “We cannot even compete with what they pay these kids over there on the state side.”