Gov. Maura Healey stated a five-person group despatched to the southern border to “educate” folks there concerning the lack of shelter availability for migrants in Massachusetts had a “successful” journey simply as they have been scheduled to return later Wednesday.
Healey’s first time period in workplace has been marked by a maxed-out state-funded shelter system struggling to maintain up with the variety of households arriving within the Bay State from different nations. She despatched members of her administration south to make “connections” with immigration officers, non-governmental organizations, and households on the Texas-Mexico border.
Healey, who stated she has not talked to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, stated Massachusetts has been coping with a migrant disaster “for a long time now” and a group was despatched to “be clear with our message that we have reached capacity here.”
“We don’t have housing available right now, and we wanted to be really clear. It’s something I’ve been saying for a long time, but I think it was important that we be able to communicate directly with folks on the ground,” she instructed reporters on the State Home. “I think it’s successful. I think it’s important that we be out there with that message.”
The group arrived in Texas Sunday and was scheduled to go to websites in San Antonio, McAllen, Hidalgo, and Brownsville, the most typical factors of entry for households that later arrive in Massachusetts, based on the Healey administration.
The journey comes months after the Healey administration put a 7,500-family restrict on the state-run shelter system and compelled those that have been ready for placement to hunt momentary housing in overflow shelters.
Beacon Hill additionally positioned a nine-month restrict on households’ time in shelter and people at overflow websites should reapply for advantages each 30 days.
Continuous demand on the system has resulted in an enormous price ticket, with officers estimating the state may spend $932 million on the emergency shelter system this fiscal 12 months and $915 within the subsequent.
MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale criticized the Texas journey, calling it a “publicity stunt that will neither address the migrant crisis in Massachusetts nor reduce the influx of migrants entering the commonwealth.”
“They can engage in rhetoric and publicity stunts all they want, but without concrete steps to limit access to emergency housing, nothing will change. To stop incentivizing migrants from coming to the commonwealth, the right to shelter law must be amended to restrict program access based on the duration of residency in the commonwealth,” she stated in an announcement.
