FEMA Funding for Illegal Immigrants: A Slush Fund for NGOs and Blue States?

In the latest episode of Parsing Immigration Policy, the Center examines how a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) program – originally designed for homeless veterans – has evolved into a controversial funding source for illegal immigrants.

This program has received wide public notice in the wake of the two recent hurricanes and claims that FEMA is putting the needs of illegal aliens ahead of Americans suffering from natural disasters.

Andrew Arthur, the Center’s fellow in law and policy, walks the audience through the creation of an emergency food and shelter program in 1987 under President Reagan, its expansion, and current role as a funding pipeline for NGOs and blue states to pay for the consequences of the Biden-Harris migrant crisis.

Highlights:

• History of FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP): Originally meant to provide relief to homeless Vietnam veterans and others, this program has expanded beyond its intended purpose.
• Shift in Focus: After more than 111,000 adult migrants with children and unaccompanied minors crossed the border illegally May 2019, President Trump requested additional funds to move migrant children out of Border Patrol custody. He ultimately received the money, but only in exchange for a $30 million expansion of EFSP for transporting and housing illegal migrants. His administration unsuccessfully tried to end the program in subsequent budget requests.
• Biden-Harris Administration Funding Surge: Under President Biden, regular EFSP grew, but a new line item also appeared called EFSP-H, for “humanitarian”, i.e., to facilitate the settlement of illegal border-crossers. It later morphed into the FEMA Shelter and Services Program (SSP). Funding grew from the original $30 million to $650 million in 2024 – a 20-fold increase in just a few years. Much of this money is directed to NGOs and local governments in blue states.
• Undermining Incentives for Policy Changes: The government creates disaster through bad policy, then requests and receives funding to cope with the disaster, which is funneled to NGOs which support the policies responsible for the disaster in the first place. This removes much of the incentive to address the illegal immigration problem or to push the federal government for policy changes.
• Reprogramming FEMA Funds: The podcast highlights DHS’s ability to reprogram FEMA money from immigration support to disaster relief, raising questions about the prioritization of illegal immigration over natural disaster recovery.

In his closing commentary, Mark Krikorian, the Center’s executive director and podcast host, highlights the arrival and expansion of the Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, emphasizing that its establishment is a direct consequence of the Biden-Harris administration’s policies.

Host

Mark Krikorian is the Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies.

Guest

Andrew Arthur is a Fellow in Law and Policy at the Center for Immigration Studies.

Related

Making Sense of FEMAs Migrant Payment Schemes

How FEMA Distributes Moneys to Cope with the Surge of Migrants

Massive Spending Bill Includes $785 Million to Feed, House and Transport Migrants

Intro Montage

Voices in the opening montage:

• Sen. Barack Obama at a 2005 press conference.
• Sen. John McCain in a 2010 election ad.
• President Lyndon Johnson, upon signing the 1965 Immigration Act.
• Booker T. Washington, reading in 1908 from his 1895 Atlanta Exposition speech.
• Laraine Newman as a "Conehead" on SNL in 1977.
• Hillary Clinton in a 2003 radio interview.
• Cesar Chavez in a 1974 interview.
• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaking to reporters in 2019.
• Prof. George Borjas in a 2016 C-SPAN appearance.
• Sen. Jeff Sessions in 2008 comments on the Senate floor.
• Charlton Heston in "Planet of the Apes".