The City of McAllen will seek to request reimbursement from the federal government for costs associated with the immigration influx, a city official says.
“Basically, [there] was legislation added to the [Federal Emergency Management Agency] bill a few years ago by Congressman Henry Cuellar that allows for a municipality to receive reimbursement for money spent in response to a humanitarian crisis,” said Xochitl Mora, director of Communication for the City of McAllen. “That was added … after the initial first wave of the Central American immigrants to the area when Congressman Cuellar still represented part of McAllen.”
In 2015, Cuellar (D-Texas) added a provision in the federal appropriations bill that allowed the State of Texas to use FEMA funds to reimburse local governments and nonprofits for their costs incurred to provide humanitarian relief, according to a news release.
“So, we are simply stating that we will be seeking that reimbursement, … however long we need to continue providing support because of the influx of refugees to the area,” Mora said. “We haven’t submitted anything yet. It is just that … statement to let the taxpayers know, to let our community know, to let our elected officials know what we are doing.”
Asked how much money the city is spending in connection with the immigrant influx, she replied, “I don’t know and I don’t know if there will be anybody that will have that dollar amount as of today. It’s changing based on the number and what the needs are as they fluctuate.”
McAllen isn’t the only city on the border that is experiencing an increase.
Last Wednesday, Kevin K. McAleenan, commissioner for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, held a news conference in El Paso to discuss the increase in illegal crossing of immigrants on the Southwest border.
“CBP is facing an unprecedented humanitarian and border security crisis all along our Southwest Border,” McAleenan said. “And nowhere has that crisis manifested more acutely than here in El Paso Sector. Here in El Paso, we have almost 3,500 migrants in custody this morning, in facilities designed for many fewer. We had over 1,000 apprehensions on Monday. The vast majority are families from Central America.”
