NEWS: Congressman Greg Casar Leads Members of Congress in Demanding Release of Texas Office of Refugees Funding
WASHINGTON – Today, Congressman Greg Casar (TX-35), along with Congressman Lloyd Doggett (TX-37) and Congresswoman Julie Johnson (TX-32), led members of Congress from Texas demanding the release of federal government funding owed to the Texas Office of Refugees.
In a letter to leaders at the Department of Health and Human Services, the representatives state “Texas is the only state in the country unable to access obligated Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) funds” and warn that if funding is not unfrozen the Texas Office of Refugees “may be forced to close its offices by March 15th.”
The members of Congress warn that the funding freeze, in effect since January, threatens 29 nonprofits across the state, 24 of which have already had to furlough or lay off staff.
In addition to calling for the release of funds, the letter asks the officials to clarify what factors have contributed to the delay in funding, what steps can be taken to ensure such delays do not occur in future, and how many programs were impacted.
The letter is authored by Representatives Greg Casar, co-led by Representative Lloyd Doggett (TX-37) and Representative Julie Johnson (TX-32), and signed by Representatives Joaquin Castro (TX-20), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), Veronica Escobar (TX-16), Lizzie Fletcher (TX-7), Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), and Al Green (TX-9).
It is addressed to the Acting Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children Families at the Department of Health and Human Services, Andrew Gradison.
A copy of the letter can be found here.
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Congressman Greg Casar represents Texas’s 35th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, which runs down I-35 from East Austin to Hays County to the West Side of San Antonio. A labor organizer and son of Mexican immigrants, Casar serves as the Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus for the 119th Congress. He also serves on the Committee on Education and Labor and the Committee on Oversight and Accountability.