Rep. Brandon Gill, R-Texas, chairman of the House Oversight Committee's Task Force on Defending Constitutional Rights and Exposing Institutional Abuses, announced his panel has subpoenaed several birth tourism companies as part of an investigation into firms allegedly helping foreign nationals travel to the United States to give birth so their children obtain U.S. citizenship.
The scrutiny intensified after photographs circulated in July showing a billboard advertising services near Mission Regional Medical Center in Mission, Texas, close to the Mexican border. The Spanish-language advertisement promoted a now-defunct website offering births for $3,950 and Caesarean sections for $5,525.
State Department regulations prohibit foreign nationals from obtaining visitor visas when consular officers determine their primary purpose is traveling to give birth so their child obtains U.S. citizenship.
What the Right Is Saying
Gill said he believes there is a compelling legal case that businesses facilitating birth tourism are engaging in a form of criminal conspiracy. "Right now, under current law, birth tourism is illegal," Gill said. "You cannot come into the United States for the purpose of giving birth." He argued these companies assist clients in lying on immigration and visa forms.
Gill described birthright citizenship as intended for former slaves and their children when the Fourteenth Amendment was ratified in 1868. "It had nothing to do with hordes of illegal aliens crossing our southern border and giving birth in America and using those babies to anchor illegal aliens into our country," he said, adding that "for all of America's history, we've always had a very clear understanding that there are certain people who are born within America's boundaries... who are not American citizens, the children of an invading army."
Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., has introduced legislation to codify President Donald Trump's executive order on birthright citizenship, citing the 1898 Wong Kim Ark Supreme Court case's exemption for those not "bound to render obedience" to the U.S. government during an invasion. Gill called the proposal a "phenomenal" plan.
What the Left Is Saying
Civil rights advocates have raised concerns about the investigation's framing. Immigrant rights groups argue that birthright citizenship is protected by the Fourteenth Amendment and that targeting pregnant women and families could disproportionately affect certain communities based on national origin or ethnicity.
Democratic lawmakers have pointed to constitutional protections, noting that courts have consistently upheld birthright citizenship under the amendment ratified in 1868 following the Civil War. Some progressive voices have argued that framing birth tourism as a criminal conspiracy represents an expansion of immigration enforcement that could have broader implications for legal immigrants and citizens with foreign-born family members.
What the Numbers Show
Mission Regional Medical Center has operated as a nonprofit hospital since 1954, according to its spokesperson. The billboard advertised services at $3,950 for standard births and $5,525 for Caesarean sections. The advertisement included international phone prefixes with country code "001," suggesting it targeted clients outside the United States.
The investigation involves records requests from businesses in multiple locations, including Miami and Texas, according to Gill's office. The task force has been examining several companies since at least 2025. The State of Texas has launched its own separate investigation into Mission Regional Medical Center regarding the marketing practices.
The Bottom Line
Gill's task force is pursuing a legal theory that birth tourism companies could face criminal conspiracy charges under existing law, which would represent an escalation beyond civil enforcement against individual visa fraud. The parallel state investigation in Texas adds another layer of scrutiny to facilities allegedly involved in such operations.
The outcome could affect how federal authorities pursue cases against businesses facilitating citizenship through birth and may influence broader debates over the Fourteenth Amendment's application. Gill said he views the issue as connected to the largest concern from the 2024 election cycle, describing it as "such an obvious abuse of the American people economically, socially, culturally" with implications for national defense.