Elon Musk alleges that FEMA designated $59 million for luxury hotels in New York for illegal immigrants

Elon Musk, head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), accused the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) of diverting $59 million in emergency funds to house illegal immigrants in luxury hotels in New York.

Musk indicated that this finding was uncovered by the DOGE, and harshly criticized the use of these resources, asserting that the transfer of funds "violated the law and is in gross insubordination to the President’s executive order." On X, he commented that these funds should go exclusively to disaster recovery, such as the hurricane in North Carolina, and not to fund luxury accommodations for illegal immigrants. "A clawback demand will be made today to recoup those funds," Musk announced.

Completely overhaul FEMA

This scandal comes at a time when Trump has openly stated his intention to completely overhaul FEMA. Last month, the president signed an executive order to create a council that will review the agency's operations. Trump has expressed concerns about possible political bias in the distribution of funds.

The controversy intensified after Trump visited Hurricane Helene survivors, who, four months after the disaster, still have not received enough aid to rebuild their homes. During a roundtable discussion with local and federal officials, the president criticized FEMA for its poor response and vowed "to begin the process of fundamentally reforming and overhauling FEMA, or maybe getting rid of FEMA. ... I think, frankly, FEMA is not good."

The full report on the FEMA audit is expected in the coming months, according to Musk.