(The Center Square) – As Chicago faces a continued influx of non-citizens arriving from the southern U.S. border, Mayor Brandon Johnson says he’s heading to the border to assess the situation.
The city of Chicago projects a budget gap of $538 million for the coming fiscal year. According to NBC Chicago, $200 million of the gap comes from care for nearly 15,000 non-citizen arrivals. The city also projects an additional $250 million to cover costs until the end of the year.
Wednesday, Johnson was asked if more busses would be arriving. He said there were 14 buses Wednesday with as much as 22 arriving this week.
“That’s how chaotic it is, that’s quite frankly how chaotic it is,” Johnson said. “At one point, there was a little bit of decorum that you wouldn’t send buses in the middle of the night. They are now breaking curfew.”
Taxpayers will also be on the hook to pay for a trip to the border for Johnson and his team.
“We need to go assess the situation, just like our team has gone to D.C.,” Johnson said. “We need better coordination … Here’s the thing, I recognize what our southern states are dealing with.”
When asked if he is going to Texas to warn people of the cold winters in Chicago and use it as a deterrent, Johnson said “no.”
Taxpayers have also paid another $56 million to Favorite Healthcare Staffing, a Kansas-based company that has been tasked with taking care of the non-citizens. Some of their employees were being paid up to $195 per hour, according to NBC Chicago.
Johnson was asked about these workers and responded to claims that the workers are being exploited.
“I am responding to every single dynamic in this city, and I have not flinched,” Johnson said. “Of course, I appreciate the work that those on the front line are doing.”
There has been no indication of when the non-citizen arrivals will stop being transported to northern states.
