Reps. Cuellar, Castro, Casar Secure New Shelter and Services Dollars for San Antonio

Today, Congressmen Henry Cuellar, Ph.D. (TX-28), Ranking Member on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Ranking Member on the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere, and Greg Casar (TX-35) released the following statement in appreciation of[KG1]the newly announced $17.8 million from Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)'s Shelter and Services Program (SSP) to support San Antonio groups and nonprofits providing services to migrants.

"Because of the historic number of people being displaced from Latin America, this additional funding for shelter and services for migrants is a lifeline to the San Antonio and South Texas region," said the lawmakers. "We have been in constant communication with Secretary Mayorkas and Administrator Criswell about the urgent need for this funding in San Antonio, and we thank them for their work in allocating the first tranche of FY24 funds quickly. We will continue working at all levels of government to ensure that the San Antonio region is equipped with the necessary resources to work with migrants traveling through our community."

Specifically, funding announced today from the Shelter and Services Program was awarded to:

• Catholic Charities Archdiocese of San Antonio, Inc. - $10,877,226
• City of San Antonio - $3,000,000
• San Antonio Food Bank - $2,400,000
• Episcopal Diocese of West Texas - $1,041,370
• Interfaith Welcome Coalition - $500,000
• Corazon Ministries, Inc. - $10,000

The Shelter and Services Program is administered by the FEMA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and provides federal funding for non-federal entities to reimburse costs incurred for services associated with noncitizen migrant arrivals in their communities. The funding announced today is the first tranche in FY24 federal assistance, with more funding to be announced at a later date.

More information on the Shelter and Services program can be found here.

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