U.S. news outlets say President Joe Biden will unveil an executive order Tuesday that will sharply limit the number of people requesting asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border.

According to administration officials, the order would effectively shut down the border once the weekly average of daily encounters reaches 2,500 between points of entry. The order would take effect immediately upon Biden’s signature, since that number is already well above that threshold.

The president is issuing the executive order under a section of the 72-year-old Immigration and Nationality Act known as 212(f), which gives a president broad authority to block entry into the country any class of immigrants believed to be “detrimental to the interests of the United States.”

Former President Donald Trump relied on this Section 212(f) to enact some of his toughest actions on immigration, including the so-called “Muslim ban” when he barred immigration and travel from seven predominantly Muslim nations, and a "zero tolerance" policy for illegal border crossings, leading to the separation of thousands of children from their parents. Trump has promised to resume hardline immigration policies if he is re-elected in November.

News outlets say Biden is taking action after a bipartisan border security bill was rejected by most Senate Republicans – and some Democrats – in February after Trump openly objected to it.

Several mayors of towns located near the U.S.-Mexico border have been invited to the White House to witness the signing of the executive order.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press.