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Several state lawmakers said that while they appreciated “the pressure” Governor Maura Healey was putting on the administration to offer financial support to the state in the course of the unprecedented refugee crisis, there was one other path she should pursue.
In a letter, Democratic Senator Michael Moore, Minority Leader and Senator Bruce Tarr and nine other lawmakers called on Healey to carry those that fund certain migrants financially accountable.
Lawmakers say “many” of the migrants who’ve come to Massachusetts have come through a federal program called “Trials for Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans and Venezuelans,” or CHNVThis allows individuals who pass a background check and have local financial support, amongst other criteria, to immigrate to the United States to live and work for 2 years. This process is known as “humanitarian parole.”
A Healey spokesman said the letter was currently being reviewed, but added that “very few” families within the reception system had arrived through CHNV's humanitarian parole.
According to the lawmakers, donors may very well be chargeable for ensuring that migrants receive housing, medical insurance, education, and have the needed paperwork for employment and other services. A donor will be a person, organization, company, or other legal entity, in accordance with the letter.
“If managed properly, this program can bring accountability and much-needed resources to our immigration system. We need to know how much it is being used, whether participants are meeting their obligations, and whether we can expand its use to increase resources and accountability,” Tarr said in an announcement.
Lawmakers asked Healey to compile data on families within the homeless shelter system who’ve financial sponsors and are in search of reimbursement.
“It is unclear why the Commonwealth is covering the necessary expenses of these migrants and not their financial sponsors, who – under penalty of
perjury – have expressly stated that they are willing and able to provide this financial support,” the letter states.
The Haitian migrant accused of raping a 15-year-old girl in a shelter was in Massachusetts through CHNV probation, federal deputies said after they launched an investigation into the incident in March. At the time, Healey didn’t say which federal program supported the person's immigration.
Last week, Healey also sent five officials from her administration to Texas to warn incoming families against traveling to Massachusetts because there aren’t enough shelters available there.
image credit : www.boston.com