WASHINGTON — During a budget hearing Tuesday with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., said the U.S. Coast Guard will officially establish its new training center at Birmingham-Southern College later this week.
The Coast Guard announced earlier this year that it would acquire the 192-acre campus to train its growing number of recruits. The college ceased operations in 2024.
“To fulfill its mission, increased training capacity is needed now more than ever,” Britt, who chairs the Homeland Security appropriations subcommittee, said during the hearing. “It is paramount we provide resources to train cadets, build vessels, and procure air assets.”
Alabama’s junior senator added that she will be on campus later this week with Admiral Kevin Lunday to mark the milestone. Mullin told Britt that since the Coast Guard is a small branch, training all its members on a variety of skills is paramount.
“When we are able to invest in their continuing training and be able to see that they have the skills and the tools needed to deliver on the threats that face America and our waterways every single day is vitally important,” Mullin said.
Britt also highlighted another DHS training center in Alabama, the National Computer Forensics Institute (NCFI) in Hoover, which trains local and state law enforcement on how to combat cyber crimes.
But she said she was “profoundly disappointed” that President Donald Trump’s budget request for fiscal year 2027 called for a decrease in funding for the institute. The budget request proposes cutting funding for the center by nearly $27 million.
“I don’t need to tell you, Mr. Secretary, that computer crimes are only becoming more sophisticated, and that we need more points of security by state and local officials, not fewer,” Britt said.
The NCFI is under the U.S. Secret Service and equips law enforcement with tools to help them “investigate cybercrime, financial fraud, and online exploitation.”
Mullin’s hearing comes on the heels of Senate Republicans trying to push through about $70 billion in funding for immigration enforcement and Border Patrol through the rest of Trump’s term. Republicans opted to use a legislative process that allows them to fund those agencies without the help of Democrats, who have refused to do so unless major reforms are made.
Democrats clash with Mullin
Though Britt gave a warm welcome to the secretary, Democrats and Mullin quickly delved into fiery exchanges over his handling of the department that he’s led since March.
The top Democrat on the subcommittee, Sen. Chris Murphy of California, opened his remarks with strong words against the department’s actions in the wake of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
“The reason why Democrats and Republicans were not able to find agreement on the underlying DHS appropriations bill is because never before in the history of our nation has a federal agency been run so far off the rails as the Department of Homeland Security,” Murphy said.
Murphy also accused DHS of violating 96 court orders and asked Mullin if the department would comply. The secretary evaded the question.
“If we didn’t think courts were politicized, I would probably be able to answer that,” Mullin said. “But we see courts over and over again that use their bench for their political opinion, not just the rule of law.”
Democrats also grilled Mullin over the conditions inside a New Jersey detention center, which have sparked protests and outcry from Democratic lawmakers.
Tuesday’s hearing marked the first time Mullin has testified in front of Congress since he was confirmed to the post in March. The secretary is set to testify in front of the House Homeland Security Committee Wednesday.