Topline
- Interior announced up to $20 million for local wildfire response equipment through the Slip‑on Tanker Pilot Program; applications due March 23, 2026.
- DHS/ICE issued multiple enforcement releases today: sentencing in the Sarah Root case; regional arrest summaries including Minnesota; and an ICE arrest notice tied to New York releases.
- Treasury published its economy statement and marketable borrowing estimates; the BEA will publish the advance 4Q25 GDP estimate and December PCE indices on Feb. 20, 2026.
- VA raised the expenditure cap for in‑home and community‑based services for veterans with complex conditions to equal VA Community Living Center costs.
Wildfire response — Interior
The Department of the Interior opened a third round of the Slip‑on Tanker Pilot Program, making up to $20 million available to help small, rural emergency‑response agencies purchase slip‑on tanker units. Grants will range from $10,000 to $249,000; eligible applicants serve communities with populations of 50,000 or fewer and areas rated moderate‑to‑high wildfire risk. Applications must be submitted via grants.gov by March 23, 2026. Interior said it awarded about $5 million to 97 local agencies in January and linked the program to planned Wildland Fire Service changes.
Immigration and law enforcement — DHS / ICE
- DHS noted the Feb. 2 sentencing of Eswin Mejia (motor vehicle homicide and flight to avoid arrest); DHS stated Mejia was extradited from Honduras in March 2025 and sentenced to about 20–22 years.
- ICE announced the Jan. 30 arrest of Gerardo Miguel‑Mora in New York and summarized his prior convictions, prior removal, and that New York jurisdictions have not honored ICE detainers in the counts ICE cites.
- DHS/ICE published regional roundup releases (including an Operation Metro Surge summary for Minnesota and a weekend “WOW.DHS.GOV” roster) listing multiple recent arrests the agency describes as violent, sexual and drug offenses. Agency releases emphasize public‑safety harms and call for greater local cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Readers should note DHS/ICE institutional incentives to highlight criminal cases and to press for policy changes that increase local cooperation.
Disasters & emergency operations
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem joined Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves in Tupelo to thank first responders for Winter Storm Fern response. DHS said it deployed personnel to the state emergency operations center, provided 90 generators, and delivered 49 trailer loads of supplies (meals, water, tarps, oxygen canisters, blankets) following a federal emergency declaration of Jan. 24, 2026.
International diplomacy
- U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and New Zealand Secretary Bede Corry met in Washington on Feb. 2 for the New Zealand–U.S. Strategic Dialogue. The joint statement records cooperation in the Indo‑Pacific, New Zealand’s selection of the MH‑60R Seahawk as its preferred maritime helicopter replacement, and New Zealand’s participation in the U.S.‑hosted Critical Minerals Ministerial that week.
- The State Department congratulated Costa Rica’s president‑elect Laura Fernández Delgado and expressed readiness to cooperate on counternarcotics, migration reduction, cybersecurity, and economic ties.
Drugs & multilateral counternarcotics
The Ninth North American Drug Dialogue (Jan. 27–28 in Ottawa) brought Canada, Mexico and the U.S. together to reaffirm three strategic priorities for the next three years: securing the global supply chain, strengthening policy implementation and law enforcement, and reducing overdose deaths and harms. The White House summary references U.S. claims of a Chinese commitment to control precursor chemical exports to North America.
Economy, fiscal schedule, and markets
- Treasury released an Economy Statement for the Treasury Borrowing Advisory Committee noting solid activity through Jan. 30, 2026 and highlighting AI‑related business investment and productivity gains. BEA will publish the advance 4Q25 GDP estimate and December PCE on Feb. 20, 2026.
- Treasury released marketable borrowing estimates: privately‑held net marketable borrowing of $574 billion for Jan–Mar 2026 (assuming end‑March cash balance $850B) and $109 billion for Apr–Jun 2026. Treasury said it will release additional Quarterly Refunding details at 8:30 a.m. ET on Feb. 4, 2026.
Veterans’ services
The Department of Veterans Affairs raised the expenditure cap for in‑home and community‑based services for veterans with certain complex conditions (including spinal cord injuries and ALS) to 100% of comparable VA Community Living Center costs (up from 65%). VA estimates about 200 veterans will use the higher cap in FY2026; the skilled home health program has enrolled roughly 1,800 veterans since 2019.
Housing & cost of living
The White House posted a summary noting national median rents fell to their lowest level since 2022 with a sixth straight monthly decline in January and a 6.2% drop from the prior peak. The administration credited supply and regulatory reforms; the White House summary cites media reports but does not include the underlying dataset on the summary page.
Messaging & calendar
- The White House posted an America 250 message marking the anniversary of the Mexican‑American War and reiterated administration assertions on border enforcement and counternarcotics.
- The White House also published a summary citing polls it says show majority support for deporting criminal noncitizens and for local cooperation with ICE; the summary lists topline percentages without full polling methodology.
- Upcoming: Feb. 4, 2026 — Treasury Quarterly Refunding details (8:30 a.m. ET). Feb. 20, 2026 — BEA release of advance 4Q25 GDP and December PCE indices.