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2.0

FEMA Withholds SSP Program Payments to Migrant Shelters Pending Review

  1. Original Date Announced

    March 13, 2025

    FEMA sent a letter to grant recipients of FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program (SSP), asking for "contact information" for migrants who were served at their shelter facilities as well as “a detailed and descriptive list of specific services provided." FEMA notified these organizations that additional funding would be held up while the agency conducted its review. Subpoenas were served in parallel by federal prosecutors against shelters in NYC.

    A redacted copy of one such letter dated March 11, 2025, is included as evidence of the new policy.

    Trump 2.0 [ID #1614]

    2025.03.11 FEMA Letter Withholding Funds to SSP Grantee Reported: FEMA launches review of migrant shelter aid, suggesting smuggling laws were violated -AP
  2. Effective Date

    March 11, 2025
  3. Subsequent Trump and Court Action(s)

    • April 2, 2025

      2025.04.02 Reported: Congress appropriated some FEMA money to house and aid migrants. Trump officials want it used to detain them - CNN

      CNN reports that FEMA notified SSP grantees that it was terminating grants associated with the program. Administration officials are also purportedly "reviewing whether DHS has the authority to redistribute these program funds for immigration enforcement . .. given that the money was congressionally appropriated for a specific purpose." According to a source, "[t]he legislative authority for this grant program is extremely broad . . . Their interpretation is that providing shelter for an immigrant is tantamount to a detention bed."

      View Document

Current Status

None

Original Trump Policy Status

Status: Reported
Trump Administration Action: Change in Practice
Subject Matter: Interior
Agencies Affected: FEMA

Documents

Trump-Era Policy Documents

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