(The Center Square) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency is awarding Massachusetts $1.9 million to assist the commonwealth with shelter and transportation services to accommodate newly arrived migrant families.
The announcement from the administrations of Gov. Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu. It comes after the governor declared a state of emergency 10 days ago in response to the migrant crisis.
“The declaration served as a notice to the federal government and the commonwealth that the state’s shelter system is rapidly expanding capacity in an unsustainable manner, and that further assistance is urgently needed,” the governor’s office said.
Her office said at this time there are more than 5,800 families in commonwealth shelters, including pregnant women and children.
Healey vows to pull out all the stops to assist migrant families arriving in the state.
“Our administration will continue to use every resource at our disposal to address the unprecedented rise in migrant families arriving in our state in need of housing and services,” said Healey.
The funding stems from an approved a joint application for shelter services submitted earlier this summer by Boston and the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.
Boston plans to utilize funds to provide transportation to and from shelters and service providers for eligible migrant families, in addition to providing temporary hotel rooms to include staffing by contracted emergency housing service providers.
Massachusetts received funds to provide leases for housing at Eastern Nazarene College to support 58 families, Karissa Hand, press secretary for Healey told The Center Square. The college will also house a family welcome center for newly arrived migrants.
Healey and Wu stressed their continued efforts to secure more federal government funding while pressuring federal officials to streamline work authorizations for migrants and reform the immigration system.
“[We] look forward to continuing to collaborate with federal partners on work authorizations, additional funding, and reforming our immigration system to welcome and support families in a dignified way,” said Wu.
There is no word on how long the funding will last or if it will be enough to provide services to the nearly 6,000 migrant families in shelters.
