More than $39 million in Shelter and Services Program funding is headed to San Diego as part of federal monies authorized by Congress to support communities that are providing services to migrants.
"The San Diego area has a long tradition of welcoming individuals seeking asylum and refuge with open arms. I'm proud to have worked alongside my San Diego delegation colleagues to secure this critical funding for communities and organizations aiding migrants," said Rep. Juan Vargas, D-San Diego. "This funding will help make sure they have the resources they need to continue their important work to provide migrant communities with food, shelter and other critical services."
The county of San Diego and the Catholic Diocese of San Diego County were both awarded $19,592,554 in SSP funding, which comes from the Department of Homeland Security, through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The agencies awarded $300 million nationally.
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San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Nora Vargas thanked local, federal and nonprofit partners such as Jewish Family Services and Catholic Charities.
"I am thrilled to announce that after months of tirelessly advocating for funding, the federal government has allocated $19.6 million to support the thousands of asylum seekers who are coming across our border," she said. "Our work is not over, and we are now working to adopt a sustainable, federally funded migrant transition center in San Diego County.
"As we learn more details on the funding in the coming days and weeks, I look forward to working with our partners to maximize these critical federal dollars for our region," Supervisor Vargas said.
The Board of Supervisors allocated $3 million in October 2023 and an additional $3 million in December 2023 to operate a temporary Migrant Transitional Center.
Following its closure due to lack of funding, Vargas advocated for a federally funded migrant transition center, which was adopted by the Board of Supervisors on Feb. 27.
"Thanks to a united voice across San Diego, we now have federal resources to stop the strain of the hundreds of daily street releases that have been occurring since the end of February," said Supervisor Joel Anderson. "I look forward to working with my colleagues, and our government and community partners, on the path forward."
The Department of Homeland Security has removed or returned more than 660,000 individuals -- the vast majority of whom crossed the Southwest Border -- including more than 102,000 individual family members, since May 12, 2023.
"DHS efforts to manage and secure our borders in a safe, orderly, and humane way include support for communities, as well as strengthened consequences for those without a lawful basis to remain and an expansion of lawful pathways that have helped reduce the number of encounters from specific populations," a statement from the agency read.
