(The Center Square)- The city of Denver is set to receive nearly $5 million in shelter grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency in 2024 to continue covering the cost of migrants arriving from the border, according to a July 23 Finance & Governance Committee meeting.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency grant of $4,852,467.00 will cover shelter costs for new migrants coming from the Department of Human Services (DHS) through the Shelter and Services Program (SSP) used by both FEMA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to release migrants from short-term holding areas and into a shelter according to the FEMA website.
“We apply for any federal assistance available and are extremely grateful for what funding FEMA has been able to provide. We will continue to call on Congress to pass additional funding for cities like Denver who have shouldered the responsibility of the newcomer response.” said Denver Communications Specialist Jon Ewing in an email to The Center Square.
The second round of the Shelter and Services Program grant will be released to those eligible by the end of 2024.
Denver received nearly $9 million from the combined SSP grants last year alone, the first $8,617,637 and the second $391,691, according to the FY2023 awards.
According to its website, Denver has assisted 42,500 migrants from the southern border since December 2022. This has cost taxpayers over $72 million for services for migrants, which resulted in the city reducing its budget while still planning to spend more than $16 million on the Denver Asylum Seeker Program, as previously reported by The Center Square.
