DATE:
December 5, 2023
30
TO:
Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT:
Title
ENHANCING HUMANITARIAN EMERGENCY RESPONSE AND RELIEF: SUPPORTIVE SERVICES FOR ASYLUM SEEKING MIGRANTS (DISTRICTS: ALL)
Body
Body
OVERVIEW
Details
With the expiration of Title 42 restrictions this past May, San Diego County and a coordinated network of NGOs, grassroot groups and community members have faced an unprecedented level of pressure, exceeding their capacity due to the number of arrivals of asylum-seeking migrants. Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Community Based Organizations (CBOs) continue to work tirelessly to respond to this influx of individuals. As a border community we have a long history of welcoming new arrivals, however, this situation has become more and more difficult to sustain. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has released over 42,000 individuals in San Diego County between September and November of this year.
In our commitment to provide support during this humanitarian crisis, on October 10, 2023 (14), the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved reallocating $3.0 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to make these funds available to support our local partners in their work with asylum seeking migrants and mitigate street releases. This action improved the ability to manage asylum seeking migrant relocations efficiently. These funds were designated to provide essential services to individuals processed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP), such as translation assistance, geographic information, transportation services, access to equipment and Wi-Fi to contact U.S. sponsors and other services to facilitate their onward travel to their final destination in the U.S. This assistance enables asylum seeking migrants entering the United States to reunite with their U.S. sponsors.
Today's action is requesting the Board to allocate additional ARPA funds provided by the federal government to make funding available to mitigate addit...
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