Rep. Miller Cosponsors Bill Prohibiting HHS from Housing Illegal Unaccompanied Children in Non-Federal Facilities without Consulting State and Local Leaders
Washington – July 18, 2014 – (RealEstateRama) — Today, U.S. Representative Candice Miller (MI-10), Vice Chair of the House Homeland Security Committee and Chairman of the Subcommittee on Border and Maritime Security, issued the following statement after cosponsoring the Our Communities, Our Choice Act, which would prevent the Department of Health and Human Services from housing illegal unaccompanied children in non-federal facilities without first consulting with state and local leaders:
“It is now tragically obvious that the Administration is incapable and/or unwilling to take immediate action to stop the unprecedented flood of children being illegally smuggled from Central America through Mexico across our southern border.
“Over the past several weeks, I have been calling on the President to take immediate, decisive action to address this humanitarian crisis, including calling upon the National Guard to help our overwhelmed agents at the border. Yet, despite the growing urgency, and the fact that he does have the resources to do so, he has refused to act. Instead, he has told Congress that he will only consider engaging the National Guard if we agree to give him an additional $3.7 billion.
“Today, as a result of the President’s executive overreach and inability to take corrective action, the U.S. now finds itself with approximately 57,000 unaccompanied children and scrambling to find space to house them, including multiple facilities within Michigan.
“States should not have to bear the burden of this Administration’s failures, nor should they be forced to foot the bill to house and educate these undocumented children, which is why I have cosponsored legislation that empowers states by requiring the federal government to consult with state leaders before housing illegal immigrant children in non-federal space within their communities.”
The Our Communities, Our Choice Act (H.R. 5138) amends the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2008 by prohibiting the Department of Health and Human Services from providing grants or contracts to any non-federal facility to house illegal unaccompanied children until they consult with state and local leaders on the location, duration, safety and security and funding of such a site
