McALLEN, Texas (Border Report) — The number of migrants encountered by Border Patrol agents in the Rio Grande Valley in July continued to drop as part of a monthly trend on the South Texas border this year, according to new data by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The agency reports there were 5,040 migrant encounters by Border Patrol agents in the RGV Sector in July; that’s down 16% from 5,981 in June, according to CBP data released Friday.

Encounters in the RGV Sector are down 58% from February when there were 11,951 encounters, the agency reports.

So far in Fiscal Year 2024, the RGV Sector is ranked fifth among nine Southwest border sectors for migrant encounters. That’s a big drop from previous years when the RGV led the nation in the number of undocumented migrants U.S. Border Patrol agents reported crossing the South Texas border.

In July, the San Diego Sector led the nation with 15,563 migrant encounters, followed by the Tucson Sector in Arizona, which had 11,722, and El Paso Sector with 11,615. The Del Rio Sector, in South Texas, had 7,237 encounters.

Overall, across the entire Southwest border there has been a dramatic drops in migrants on the border since President Joe Biden in early June issued an executive order requiring all asylum-seeking migrants to apply for an appointment via the CBP One app. Meetings are held at ports of entry along the border, including:

• Arizona: Nogales
• Texas: Brownsville, Eagle Pass, Hidalgo, Laredo, and El Paso
• California: Calexico and San Ysidro

The order also requires asylum-seekers to on their own declare they have a fear for their life if returned to their homeland. Otherwise, they likely face deportation and/or repatriation.

There are some exceptions for extremely vulnerable individuals and for unaccompanied children, but Department of Homeland Security officials on Friday said the data shows the new rules are deterring illegal immigration on the Southwest border.

White House spokesperson Angelo Fernández Hernández called it “decisive executive actions to secure the border.”

The restrictions come as the administration on Monday opened up applications for a new parole in place program for qualifying spouses and children of U.S. citizens who want to apply for legal parole and who have been here for at least a decade and don’t want to leave the country to do so.

DHS says monthly encounters on the Southwest border in July were the lowest since September 2020.

In the RGV Sector, most of migrants crossing into South Texas are Mexican nationals — 27% — followed by Hondurans at 22%, the agency reports.

And nearly half who crossed into the RGV were single adults.

A CBP official from the RGV Sector told Border Report on Monday that the decrease in migrant encounters is also attributed to ramped up enforcement efforts by Mexico south of the border. This includes more troops on Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala, as well as in its interior.

Sandra Sanchez can be reached at SSanchez@BorderReport.com.