Homeland Security officials are discussing using FEMA funds, intended to provide housing and other aid to migrants, for immigration enforcement, according to multiple sources familiar with the discussions.
The so-called Shelter and Services Program was the target of Republican attacks during the 2024 presidential campaign and drew the ire of Elon Musk earlier this year, ultimately resulting in the firings of four employees.
This week, FEMA notified recipients that it was terminating grants associated with the program, arguing that the payments “no longer effectuate the program goals or agency priorities,” according to a termination letter obtained by CNN.
“The individuals receiving these services often have no legal status and are in the United States unlawfully, such as those awaiting removal proceedings. This, in turn, provides support for illegal aliens and is not consistent with DHS’s current priorities,” Acting FEMA Administrator Cameron Hamilton said in termination letters distributed to grant recipients this week.
The grant program was established in 2019 to aid cities sheltering migrants, but who administered it changed over the years. The Emergency Food and Shelter Program, a component of FEMA, administered the program, and later FEMA administered the funds in partnership with US Customs and Border Protection.
FEMA’s Shelter and Services Program awarded $641 million to dozens of states and organizations in fiscal year 2024, according to the agency.
Unspent SSP funding is estimated to be more than $800 million, according to a source with knowledge.
“The legislative authority for this grant program is extremely broad,” a source told CNN. “Their interpretation is that providing shelter for an immigrant is tantamount to a detention bed.”
No final decision has been made on repurposing SSP funding for immigration enforcement, according to sources.
“Secretary Noem has directed FEMA to implement additional controls to ensure that all grant money going out is consistent with law and does not go to fraud, waste or abuse, as in the past,” Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told CNN in a statement. “The open borders gravy train is over, and there will not be a single penny spent that goes against the interest and safety of the American people.”
The potential recasting of FEMA funds for immigration enforcement comes against the backdrop of discussions to dismantle the disaster relief agency and a push to shore up resources to execute on the president’s mass deportation pledge.
It’s not uncommon for departments, including DHS, to reprogram funds. DHS has previously redistributed funds for detention beds. During Trump’s first term, administration officials similarly made plans to move around millions of dollars from FEMA for immigration enforcement.
But Trump administration officials are reviewing whether DHS has the authority to redistribute these program funds for immigration enforcement, sources told CNN, given that the money was congressionally appropriated for a specific purpose. The funds were initially intended to provide financial support for shelters and cities assisting federal authorities amid record surges at the border and limited federal resources.
SSP grant funding has been effectively frozen at FEMA for weeks as staff awaited guidance on how to distribute those funds without violating President Donald Trump’s executive orders on immigration funding and sanctuary cities.
Hamilton has also urged top Homeland Security officials to cut the program from the disaster relief agency, including, most recently, in a memo sent last week, which CNN obtained.
“SSP in no way aligns with FEMA’s core mission of helping people before, during, and after disasters,” Hamilton wrote in the memo, adding that removing the program from FEMA “would also support the Department goal of reducing waste while in an austere budget environment.”