Pima County and the state of Arizona are submitting new applications this week for the next round of federal funding for asylum seeker care programs.
Pima County has been running an aid program for asylum seekers and migrants released by the Border Patrol across southern Arizona to pursue immigration cases in the U.S. since 2019. It is largely funded through a FEMA program that Pima county and others apply to get a share of throughout the year.
Supervisor Adelita Grijalva says the system has so far been able to prevent street releases of asylum seekers in Tucson.
"You have to understand that the responsibility of having even 700 people dropped off in the middle of downtown Tucson, would be the city of Tucson and Pima County’s responsibility," she said. "You know, right now it's 106 degrees in the middle of downtown, and people with small children, older people, that would be the responsibility of our health department."
The county received almost $22 million from FEMA in April. Grijalva says now they likely have enough funds to take the program at least through the end of 2024. The latest funding request is due this month and Grijalva says whatever money they're awarded will be used to keep the program afloat next year and ensure resources make it to Pima County.
"If the state were doing a full application covering all of the counties that are impacted, I would have happily said, 'OK, Pima County is transitioning away.' But that’s not the case," Grijalva said.
Instead, Grijalva says the state is endorsing Pima County's proposal and also applying separately for funding for similar aid programs in Maricopa and Yuma counties.
Last week at their biweekly meeting, the Pima County Board of Supervisors discussed whether to drop the program and the end of this year and ask the state or other NGOs and local entities to take up the helm. They voted 3-1 to pursue another round of funding to ensure the program continues regardless of what goes on at the state or federal level.
