Pima County looking to get out of asylum seeker business

TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Pima County has started the process of decoupling from being the lead agency in funding services for asylum seekers released by Border Patrol.

The county has funneled $98 million in federal dollars to the agencies that house, feed, and transport the migrants over the past five years.

During that time, 477,852 asylum seekers have moved through Tucson to destinations throughout the United States.

One of the consequences is Pima County could see street releases for the first time, one of the few jurisdictions in the U.S. impacted by the asylum programs able to say that.

“Having 1,100 people dropped off in the middle of downtown Tucson becomes a huge problem for the city and a huge problem for Pima County,” said Pima County Board Chair Adelita Grijalva.

1,100 a day is the average number of asylum seekers being released by Border Patrol into the county. The migrants are being fed, housed and transported by social service agencies to keep them off the street. But when the county’s federal funding runs out, the program ends and it becomes a free-for-all all.

“I think if you have 1,100 people dropped off at the Greyhound bus station, you have a potential issue not only to the Greyhound bus station but to other individuals and potentially the area adjacent to it,” said Pima County Administrator Jan Lesher.

Pima County has prevented that by being the fiscal agent passing through $100 million federal dollars to groups and organizations that take care of them and moving nearly a half a million asylum seekers through Tucson. That’s on the verge of ending.

“I know that this is a huge drain of resources to our staff and I understand the desire to transition,” Grijalva said.

What they’d like to transition to, is for the state of Arizona to become the money handlers, applying for the grants and distributing the money where it’s needed. The state has agreed to do that for Maricopa and Yuma counties, but not Pima County, leaving it with nowhere else to go.

“But who is the person that’s going to take over the responsibility that’s been ours,” Grjalva said. “I understand the desire of administration and staff respectfully to transition to somebody else but at this moment, I don’t see anybody else stepping up.”

This is why the county voted 3-1 to apply for more money to continue with services but with no guarantee it will get it.

Competition will be fierce because for the first time the county will be competing against cities like New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago. In the past, money for the county was automatic but no more.

The county said it would protect the taxpayers by applying for the funding.

“I know the recommendation is not to do this but I don’t think we should leave any dollars on the table,” said District 2 Supervisor Dr. Matt Heinz. “Because we could be in a situation where we’re stuck doing it and we didn’t get any additional money to do it and that’s coming out of the general fund potentially.”

In a memo released to the board last night, county administration recommended the board not apply for more funding and smoothly transition out of its role.

It was a recommendation ignored by the majority but not all.

“It just seems to me we’re trying to get out of the business of sheltering asylum seekers, wonder where that came from, then why are we prolonging the inevitable,” said District 4 Supervisor Steve Christy.

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