The City Council of El Paso (Texas) has once again extended the emergency order due to the unrelenting immigration crisis in the city. This is the third extension set by local authorities in two months. Voz Media witnessed the situation in May when Title 42 expired.
In a press release, El Paso confirmed this new extension, which will be valid for 30 days and was unanimously approved on July 17 by all local legislators. With the emergency order, the local government will be authorized to "allocate personnel and resources to help address the humanitarian and public safety crisis resulting from mass immigration."
7 17-23-019525 Re Enactment Emergency Ordinance No. 019485_Voz Media by VozMedia on Scribd
On May 3, Mayor Oscar Leeser declared a state of emergency as Title 42 came to an end, a measure that allowed the immigrants who entered the United States illegally to be turned away because they posed a risk to the country. "We are not going to open the border and the border is not open today," Leeser stated at the time.
The city with the highest number of encounters this fiscal year
El Paso is the border location most affected by the migration crisis. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) statistics, of the 1,513,441 encounters so far this fiscal year, which began in October 2022, 347,629 occurred in El Paso.
These encounters shot up more than 70% so far in FY2023 compared to the same period in FY2022 when there were 204,034 in El Paso.
By nationality, there were more encounters with Mexicans compared to immigrants from other countries. Border agents have had 107,125 encounters with Mexican immigrants in El Paso through June. This is followed by encounters with Guatemalans (35,424), Hondurans (9,494) and Salvadorans (9,074). The other 186,512 encounters were with people of other nationalities.
Joe Biden's quick visit to El Paso
Knowing that El Paso is the border city that is suffering the most from the immigration surge, Joe Biden hasn't done anything to fix it. His concern for Texans is minimal.
In January, the president visited El Paso with Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, local county court judge Ricardo Samaniego and Leeser. The visit lasted just three hours.
