BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

City keeps emergency ordinance despite drop in migrant releases

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

ovp test

mLife Diagnostics LLC: Oral Fluid Drug Testing

Male shot by female at Shreveport apartment

Class to create biodiverse backyard

Rules for outbursts at Caddo School Board Meeting

maylen

https://digital-stage.newsnationnow.com/

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241114185800

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241115200405

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241118165728

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241118184948

EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – The El Paso City Council on Tuesday renewed a pair of emergency ordinances so that municipal employees can deploy to nonprofits and the city is free to provide migrants shelter as needed.

The 7-0 vote with the consent of Mayor Oscar Leeser keeps the ordinances in place for another 30 days. The council originally approved them on May 8, 2023.

El Paso witnessed another migrant surge at the end of September and the beginning of October, which resulted in U.S. Customs and Border Protection processing centers holding upwards of 7,000 migrants at one time.

CBP released a big chunk of those migrants on parole or with notices to appear in federal immigration court at a later date. That’s when the city had to step in with housing.

“In the last three to four days the numbers dropped down 1,000 people per day. So, we’ve gone from 1,700 (daily migrant encounters) to 600. That makes a big difference. We’ve closed down all the hotels,” Leeser said at Tuesday’s council meeting.

The latest surge prompted the city to close on the purchase of the old Morehead Middle School with the El Paso Independent School District. The buildings are now a dual-purpose municipal facility – a permanent animal services center and an emergency migrant shelter.

Council members approved the extension without discussion. However, Leeser and Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino praised city staff for the efficient handling of the migrant situation.

“In El Paso, we probably have the largest (number) of asylum-seekers crossing anywhere in the country, yet we’ve had no street releases,” Leeser said. “Last month, we were able to (assist) 16,000 people and feed over 40,000 meals and continued to make sure our community is safe, and the asylum-seekers continue to be safe and go to the destination of their choice.”

El Paso Deputy City Manager Mario D’Agostino talks abou the migrant emergency during a meeting of the El Paso City Council on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023.

He added that, unlike other border and large U.S. cities, El Paso this time did not see the release of any migrants from CBP custody straight to the streets. They either went to nonprofits or the city provided hotel rooms or space at the old school for them.

D’Agostino said the city “is now sitting in a better place,” with $30 million in advance Federal Emergency Management Agency funding in the bank. A year ago, the city was relying on reimbursements that take months to process.

“We are in a different situation. We’re able to handle things differently and it has been a smoother operation,” D’Agostino said.

Border Report

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

Site Settings Survey

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241119133138

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Clear

la

48°F Clear Feels like 48°
Wind
1 mph NNW
Humidity
52%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

A few passing clouds. Low 46F. Winds light and variable.
46°F A few passing clouds. Low 46F. Winds light and variable.
Wind
2 mph N
Precip
8%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Waning Gibbous