Topline
The Department of Homeland Security reportedly spent $172 million on two private jets for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and other agency officials—as Noem’s spending habits using public dollars have faced criticism dating back to her time as South Dakota governor.
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem looks on during a roundtable discussion in the State Dining Room of the White House on October 08, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
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Key Facts
The Coast Guard, which is under DHS, entered into a contract for two long-range used G700 jets from Gulfstream, The New York Times reported, citing a government procurement website that shows a contract for the jets valued at more than $172 million.
The jets have the “most spacious cabin in the industry,” Gulfstream says on its website, according to the Times.
Coast Guard Acting Commandant Kevin Lunday told Congress earlier this year, when speaking about the private jet that had been assigned to Noem, “the avionics are increasingly obsolete, the communications are increasingly unreliable and it’s in need of recapitalization, like much of the rest of the fleet,” while requesting $50 million for the Coast Guard budget to replace the jet Noem uses.
Republicans’ signature policy bill passed earlier this year included $2.3 billion for “the procurement and acquisition of rotary-wing aircraft,” the Times noted, though it’s unclear where the funding for the $172 million contract came from or why the department bought two jets.
An unnamed DHS spokesperson told the Times the two jet purchases were “a matter of safety” and the Coast Guard’s existing jet used by Noem was more than 20 years old and “well beyond operational usage hours for a corporate aircraft.”
Tangent
Noem implemented a rule requiring her personal approval of any DHS expense over $100,000. The protocol has caused a backlog of spending requests, The New York Times reported in August.
Chief Critic
Reps. Laura DeRosa, D-Conn., who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, and Lauren Underwood, D-Ill., who is on the Homeland Security Committee, raised concerns about the jet purchases in a letter to Noem, according to the Times. They asked her to “clarify the funding source” and said the purchases suggest the Coast Guard “has been directed to prioritize your own comfort above the U.S.C.G.’s operational needs, even during a government shutdown,” adding “we are deeply concerned about your judgement, leadership priorities, and responsibility as a steward of taxpayer dollars.”
Key Background
Noem’s spending habits have faced scrutiny dating back to her time as governor of South Dakota. She spent $68,000 upgrading the governor’s mansion with new rugs, chandeliers and a sauna, the Sioux Falls Argus Leader reported in 2021. While campaigning for Trump, her travel costs amounted to $150,000 in expenses covered by South Dakota taxpayers, including trips to Palm Beach, Florida, airfare for a six-day trip to Paris where she spoke at a right-wing gathering, a bear hunt in Canada with her niece and $2,200 on a trip to Houston for dental work, The Associated Press reported in March. Democrats have also criticized her for staying in a waterfront Coast Guard property in Washington typically reserved for its top admiral, The Washington Post reported. The paper also noted that Noem had used Coast Guard jets to travel to South Dakota at least nine times as of mid-July. A spokeswoman for Noem reportedly said she stayed at the Coast Guard property due to safety reasons and reimbursed the government “tens of thousands of dollars” for personal travel on the jet.
Further Reading
Coast Guard Buys Two Private Jets For Noem, Costing $172 Million (New York Times)
Kristi Noem is living rent-free in home used by Coast Guard commandant (Washington Post)
Kristi Noem refused to say who financed some of her travel. It was taxpayers who were on the hook (Associated Press)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2025/10/18/coast-guard-reportedly-spent-172-million-on-private-jets-for-kristi-noems-use/
