Customs and Border Protection finally reported border apprehensions on their official website for the month of September, and with it, full year data for Fiscal Year 2019 ending Sept. 30th.

In the month of September, Border Patrol apprehended 40,507 persons at the southwest border, a decline of 20% from the previous month, and the lowest level in a year.

Of particular interest, apprehensions came in below the level of September 2018, signaling that the surge begun in July 2018 is coming to an end. We expect apprehensions to fall back to more typical levels for the balance of the year.

For Fiscal Year 2019, total apprehensions at the southwest border came in at 851,507. This still represents the highest number of apprehensions since 2007, before the start of the Great Recession, and far higher than any year in the last decade.

Once again, President Trump is due credit for the reduction in apprehension rates. His pressure on Mexico has led that country to take effective steps to prevent Central American migrant families from transiting through Mexico to the US border.