Report: FEMA Violated Law by Withholding, Delaying Money for Migrant Programs
As the fight between the White House and Congress continues over whether the Trump Administration can rescind money for programs appropriated by Congress, a new watchdog report says the administration violated federal law by delaying and withholding money for two Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) programs.
In a report, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that FEMA and its parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), violated the Impoundment Control Act (ICA), by delaying payments for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program and the Shelter and Services Program. Those are two FEMA grant programs designed to defray the cost of housing migrants who recently arrived in the U.S.
“Because some of these appropriations are set to expire by the end of the fiscal year, it is crucial that the agency prudently obligates these funds prior to their expiration,” wrote GAO in its report.
Congress set aside $650 million for the Shelter and Services Program in 2024, and that same amount was extended under a temporary funding bill for 2025. The grants continue a program first started during President Donald Trump’s administration to help communities handle migrant arrivals.
According to GAO, it’s the sixth time this year that the administration violated the ICA, which permits the president to withhold Congressionally appropriated funds in limited circumstances.
But DHS disputed the findings.
“This allegation is nothing more than nitpicking a technicality to try to make FEMA look bad,” said DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin to Bloomberg Government. “The facts are that FEMA is going to award these funds, and no money is being impounded.”
And DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and others have argued that the funds represented an abuse of taxpayer dollars, pointing to the use of grants to house migrants at some New York City hotels.
Congressional Democrats Cry Foul
The news prompted the top Democrat on the Appropriations Committee to speak out.
“This is another stark reminder of a fact we have known for months: President Trump is breaking the law in order to prevent communities across the country from receiving resources they have been promised, including critical funding to address homelessness,” said Senator Patty Murray (D-WA). “Republican lawmakers need to join us insisting every last bit of this funding gets out the door in a fair, impartial way.”