The U.S. government has awarded a Bozeman-based company a contract worth more than $73 million to design and build replacement fencing along 20 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border in southern New Mexico.
The contract, awarded in January to Barnard Construction Company, is to create a more sturdy barrier that provides visibility but is difficult to walk through.
Regional Customs and Border Protection officials said there was no timeline for when work might start, and the construction company did not respond to email and phone requests inquiring about project details.
News of the contract came after a federal judge in California sided this week with President Donald Trump on a challenge to building his promised border wall. The court rejected arguments that the administration overreached by waiving laws requiring environmental and other reviews before construction could begin.
Critics today questioned the $73 million contract, which is being funded with operations and maintenance money budgeted through the Army Corps of Engineers.
Barnard Construction Co. was among three bidders. The contract calls for the project to be complete by mid-February of next year.