The estimates for building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border range from $8 million to $25 million per mile, said Mick Mulvaney, director of the Office of Management and Budget.
His comments came Monday during an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt.
"I've got, I don't know, six or seven different papers on my desk," Mulvaney said. "I've got one that goes, starts at $8 million per mile. It goes up to about $25 million per mile. So again, it just depends on, when you're talking about across 2,000 miles or so, what you decide to build in what areas.
"It just depends on the kind of wall that you want to build, and I don't think we've settled, yet, on the actual construction. You can do steel, you could do concrete, you can do a combination of concrete and steel. You can supplement it with different types of technologies and so forth. So it sort of depends on what you want to build.
And he said since the barrier will be "several thousand miles long," there will be certain places where a different type of wall will be needed.
Mulvaney said the administration is going to try to start funding construction during the 2017 fiscal year.
President Donald Trump has made construction of the wall a key part of his presidential campaign. He has insisted it would be a wall and not a fence.
The Times noted about 654 miles of the border has a barrier. Just over 350 miles is covered by a "substantive fence." In addition, another 300 miles is lined with vehicle barriers.
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