FEMA lacks funds to get through hurricane season, having spent close to $1 billion on immigrants

It was recently announced by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) won't have enough funds to last through hurricane season, in part because it spent close to $1 billion on illegal migrant services. 

Hurricane Helene hit Florida last week as a Category Four storm, and caused disastrous damage in Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. As of Saturday afternoon, there are at least 227 dead across six states from the storm, according to CNN, and North Carolina appeared to be the hardest hit.

However, FEMA previously spent approximately $650 million on grants to nonprofits and local authorities that resettle and aid illegal immigrants so far, and has sent employees down to the border to help address the increase in unaccompanied minors that began in 2021, Fox News reported. Secretary Mayorkas told reporters Wednesday that FEMA does not have adequate funds to manage the disaster relief. 

Republicans have stated that FEMA would have more money available if it hadn't spent close to $1 billion to support immigrants the Biden administration has released into the U.S. 

Over the last two years, FEMA-administered programs have committed more than $1.4 billion to support non-federal entities that are taking care of migrants, according to the New York Post. 

In May of this year, county supervisors in San Diego, California, accepted $19.6 million from FEMA to fund a migrant transition day center, according to local media.

FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security have pushed back on concerns that the money the department uses to relocate and house illegal aliens is being taken from the disaster relief funds.

"No disaster relief funding at all was used to support migrants housing and services. None. At. All," White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates said in a memo. "In fact, the funding for communities to support migrants is directly appropriated by Congress to CBP, and is merely administered by FEMA. The funding is in no way related to FEMA’s response and recovery efforts."