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TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — The recent approval of $1.2 trillion in budget funding for the federal government means street releases of asylum seekers are not expected to take place in Pima County, according to a memo issued today by County Administrator Jan Lesher.
Lesher notified the Board of Supervisors in February that an impending exhaustion of federal funding would end temporary sheltering and transportation assistance for Legally Processed Asylum Seekers (LPAS) by March 31.
But that was before President Biden signed into law the $1.2 trillion budget last Saturday, which included $650 million in appropriations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and Shelter and Services Program (SSP).
"It is precisely this agency and these programs that have funded our regional efforts to move LPAS quickly and efficiently through this community and onward to their final destinations in the interior of the country," Lesher's memo said.
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Lesher said in the memo that, after talking with Department of Homeland Security, CBP and Federal Emergency Management Agency, she expects that additional federal funds will be directed to Pima County in support of that operation in the coming weeks.
"When that occurs, we need to be prepared to immediately and seamlessly continue those services that have allowed us to prevent street releases without the use of General Fund support," the memo said.
Lesher said she has directed county staff to work with Catholic Community Services to plan for continued operations at the Ajo and Drexel facilities beyond the end of this month. Contract extensions and associated funding will be brought back to the Board of Supervisors for subsequent approval, the memo said.
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