Helene: Answers sought for $59M to ‘illegal alien housing,’ corrective action

By Alan Wooten
The Center Square 

How $59 million was allocated “for illegal alien housing” in New York and what kind of detailed action plan is being proposed are asked of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton by five congressional members from North Carolina.

Immersed in complaints about the Federal Emergency Management Agency that Hamilton leads on an interim basis tied to Hurricane Helene, the quintet writes a letter acknowledging a change from Biden administration policy and action against “rogue FEMA employees” since Trump took office.

In part, the Thursday letter reads, “In the wake of Hurricane Helene, North Carolina has witnessed first-hand the need for serious FEMA reforms to better address the federal response to future natural disasters. There is no doubt that a complete and total overhaul of FEMA is necessary.

“While we are grateful for this administration’s leadership, we recognize that Congress also has a duty to conduct oversight and then pass permanent fixes to end FEMA’s mismanagement. That is why we write to you today. We hope to gain greater insight into FEMA’s activities during the Biden administration that paved the way for the scandalous distribution of funds that prioritized illegal aliens over the American people.”

The five questions end with request for an action plan detailing how the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA, an agency within it, “will prevent this situation from occurring in the future.”

Republican Reps. Mark Harris, Pat Harrigan, Virginia Foxx, Addison McDowell and Chuck Edwards also ask for a “full accounting of funds obligated by FEMA staff for the aiding and abetting of the illegal alien invasion during the Biden administration or in the current Trump administration, whether through the Shelter and Services Program, or other accounts.”

The first three questions ask for an update on the $59 million sent and used for five luxury hotels in New York City; how the expenditure was allocated, through which organization’s request and purchase; and if any Disaster Relief Fund money went to “illegal alien housing in the past six months.”

Earlier this week in an email to The Center Square, the Department of Homeland Security did not confirm or deny a connection or impact to relief efforts in western North Carolina. FEMA’s Chief Financial Officer, two program analysts, and a grant specialist were fired after the Department of Government Efficiency team led by Elon Musk discovered the $59 million in payments.

Noem on Wednesday followed up by confirming the Tren de Aragua gang from Venezuela utilized the housing as a base of operations, and the convicted killer of Laken Riley had stayed there.

FEMA money is not all from the same allocation. For example, relief for hurricanes like Helene and fires in California would typically transition through the Disaster Relief Fund.

According to FEMA.gov, the Shelter and Services Program – a $650 million recipient in 2024 from congressional appropriation in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 – provides “financial support to non-federal entities to provide sheltering and related activities to noncitizen migrants following their release from the Department of Homeland Security. The intent is to support U.S. Customs and Border Protection in the safe, orderly, and humane release of noncitizen migrants from short-term holding facilities.”