Biden-Harris administration allocates billions of dollars for illegal immigrants from the agency tasked with assisting Helene victims

The agency dedicated to assisting Americans in the face of catastrophes will allocate $640.9 million to illegal immigration over the course of the year. This is what the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) admits on its website, where it details that the money will go to "non-federal" institutions, including nonprofits and state and local governments.

The program for the distribution of this money is known as the Service Shelter Program (SSP). Its purpose is to assist the Border Patrol in the "safe, orderly and humane release" of immigrants housed in temporary detention centers. It was created in 2023, when it received more than $360 million.

FEMA was created in 1979 by Jimmy Carter. Today it has a billion-dollar budget and more than 20,000 employees across the country. Its mission, in its own words, is "helping people before, during and after disasters."

This cost to taxpayers, however, comes into question during the aftermath of the devastating Hurricane Helene.

Shelter and Services Program recipients

The organization that benefited most from the first distribution of funds (two were recorded) was Annunciation House, a nonprofit that became front-page news because Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton wanted to investigate it for "alien harboring, human smuggling, and operating a stash house." However, a judge dismissed his subpoena for Annunciation House to turn over documents. Paxton vowed to appeal.

In addition, the list of recipients seems to indicate that the biggest beneficiaries are Democratic or left-leaning governments, such as New York City, through its Office of Management and Budget, or Pima County, Arizona, where four of the five members of the Board of Supervisors are Democrats. While in Republican-governed territories, the money mostly goes to nonprofits.

The administration announced an additional $380 million for the SSP a month before Helene made landfall in Florida as a Category 4 storm, after devastating parts of Cuba.

Another FEMA distribution scandal

The Federalist, one of the first outlets to report on the SSP, noted in a recent story that under the Biden-Harris administration, the agency's prime goal is to "instill equity as a foundation of emergency management," Its second is to "lead whole of community in climate resilience" (in reference to climate change). Only in third place is it proposed to "promote and sustain a ready FEMA and prepared nation."

At the end of August, it became known that the government would allocate $2.5 billion to the agency for climate resilience. Since June, $5.1 billion has been earmarked for this cause.

Mayorkas: 'FEMA does not have the funds'

Property damage from Helene has been estimated at up to $35 billion, according to insurance industry experts. Other estimates put this figure at more than $100 billion.

Going into detail, the analysis becomes even bleaker. One notable indication is homes: most of the affected homeowners do not have flood insurance. The hurricane submerged towns located far from the coast or major bodies of water, where residents believe it is unnecessary to purchase such policies.

A study by Politico revealed that in dozens of affected counties, less than 1% of households took out insurance with a FEMA program that sells the vast majority of insurance against heavy flood waters. Those who did not purchase these services may receive other assistance from the agency, but the report notes that it is often limited to "only a few thousand dollars for emergency expenses and minor home repairs." Worse, lower-income families are the ones who often go without insurance.

This Wednesday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas admitted that FEMA lacks the funds to cope with the hurricane season. The emergency response agency reports to DHS, which Mayorkas heads. However, he assured that, for the time being, the agency's coffers are enough to cover "immediate needs."

Days earlier, President Joe Biden suggested that he might call members of Congress out of their recess to approve extra funds to deal with the catastrophes.