Thursday, July 17, 2014

Southern Border Invasion: Flood of Child Migrants Spurs Local Backlash from Local Officials, Mayors, and Governors

The federal government is scrambling to find temporary housing for thousands of children streaming across the Mexican border, asking states for help as an increasing number of governors and local officials protest efforts to send the migrants to their communities.
While some officials are welcoming the children, concerns voiced in states and communities near the southwest border and beyond demonstrate the depth of the Obama administration's challenge in trying to manage the crisis.
A dormitory for housing immigrant families in Artesia, N.M.
Rudy Gutierrez/Press Pool
In Escondido, Calif., the planning commission denied a permit to turn a former nursing home into a 96-bed youth shelter after residents protested at a packed public meeting. Federal officials abandoned plans to locate a facility near Richmond, Va., after protests from residents. In Texas, two communities passed resolutions stating they don't want shelters—before anyone suggested opening them there.
At the National Governors Association meeting in Nashville, Tenn., over the weekend, governors expressed concerns over the cost of housing children in their states. And Nebraska's governor complained about 200 children who were sent to his state to live with their families, saying federal officials should have told the state who was being sent there.
"Governors and mayors have the right to know when the federal government is transporting a large group of individuals, in this case illegal immigrants, into your state," Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman, a Republican, said in an interview this weekend. He said he is concerned federal officials won't answer questions about plans to send the children to public schools and the potential costs to taxpayers.
[...]
... HHS says it is working with local officials as it tries to open new shelters. But an agency spokesman said HHS is legally barred from notifying states when it places children with their families, as was the case in Nebraska, due to privacy concerns.
Still, the policy director for the Republican Governors Association alerted its members about the transfer of children to Nebraska in an email and asked states to report back with similar concerns. ...
Read the full story HERE.

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