(The Center Square) – Amid an influx of migrants arriving in Massachusetts, Gov. Maura Healey is taking further steps to try and ease the strain on resources.
The first-term Democrat has requested federal changes to the work authorization process, following a state of emergency declaration, and utilizing the National Guard to assist asylum-seekers.
Healey sent a letter to U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas requesting a change to existing work authorizations for migrants, expediting the process to “relieve pressure” on emergency shelters and services in the commonwealth.
The governor’s request comes on the heels of her announcement to activate up to 250 National Guard members to provide support services at emergency shelter sites housing over 6,200 migrant families.
The governor applauds the commonwealth’s efforts in stepping up to address what she describes as a “crisis of inaction.”
“Massachusetts has stepped up to address what has been a federal crisis of inaction many years in the making,” Healey said. “Communities, service providers, and our National Guard are going above and beyond to ensure that families arriving in Massachusetts have a safe place to sleep and their basic needs met.”
Conversely, critics of the governor have accused her of failing to hold the Biden administration accountable for its “failed” immigration policy, ultimately leading to the strain on commonwealth resources.
Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance argues the National Guard should be utilized to secure the southern border while suggesting Healey visit the border to “see firsthand the failure President Biden has created.”
Paul Diego Craney, spokesman for Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance, accuses the governor of playing politics at the expense of taxpayers.
“Everyone knows this is not the right approach for the illegal immigrants entering our country, the immigrants trying to enter our country legally, and the Massachusetts taxpayers expected to pay for this immense economic burden,” Craney said. “The governor needs to put her state’s interest ahead of her party’s.”
The group says the crisis is costing Massachusetts taxpayers an estimated $45 million a month to accommodate the needs of the migrants.
Healey’s administration says the National Guard members will be charged with providing essential services at emergency shelters. Guard members will help fill a staffing gap until a more “permanent” solution can be implemented.
The guardsmen will “ensure that every family in emergency shelter has their needs met, including access to food, transportation, medical care, and education,” according to Healey’s office.
The governor’s request to speed up federal work authorizations for migrants echoes similar calls from New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, grappling with an estimated 100,000 asylum-seekers each month in the Empire State.
