Illinois Governor Accuses City of Not Moving Fast Enough to Provide Shelter for Migrants
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker criticized the city on Thursday for its slow response in ensuring that migrants have proper shelter, which has resulted in people being seen on the streets.
Pritzker stated that the State of Illinois has been offering assistance and fulfilling its obligations.
"The city has been following its own process, but it hasn't been moving fast enough," Pritzker explained. "Therefore, we have conducted a detailed analysis of the past 14 months to identify the bottlenecks. We are now deploying our resources to address these issues, expedite the process, and ensure that the city builds shelters more quickly."
Pritzker emphasized that the state does not operate shelters and that it is the city's responsibility to do so.
"We have consistently urged the city to establish physical shelters," Pritzker added. "I'm not here to criticize; I'm simply suggesting that with winter approaching and cold weather conditions, we must ensure that no one is left without shelter."
The state of Illinois, led by Governor Pritzker, has been actively collaborating with the city of Chicago to address the migrant crisis. In fact, the state has contributed more financial resources to assist migrants than the city has. Governor Pritzker emphasized that if the city is seeking additional funding, it should approach the General Assembly in Springfield to make their case. However, the city has not taken this step so far.
Furthermore, Governor Pritzker announced that the state will take a more assertive approach in tackling the migrant crisis and providing shelter in Chicago. Notably, Mayor Brandon Johnson was absent from the press conference where these statements were made.
Governor Pritzker's announcement regarding funding for the migrant crisis coincided with the approval of Mayor Johnson's budget plan for 2024 by the Chicago City Council. The budget includes $150 million specifically allocated for migrants, although this amount is projected to cover only a few months of the estimated costs for the upcoming year.
Since August 2022, over 21,200 asylum seekers have arrived in Chicago. Currently, there are 12,281 migrants residing in one of the 25 city-run shelters, with an additional 1,831 individuals staying at police stations and 572 individuals at O'Hare International Airport, awaiting space in a shelter.
The governor of Illinois has announced that $160 million in surplus funding from the Illinois Department of Human Services will be allocated to assist Chicago in providing shelter and services to migrants. This funding will be divided into three programs.
One program will receive $30 million to establish a large intake and welcome center for newly arrived migrants. The aim is to streamline the process of providing services to asylum seekers, reduce delays in finding temporary shelter and permanent housing, and eliminate bottlenecks.
In addition, the state will assist asylum seekers who do not wish to stay in Chicago by helping them reach their desired destinations. State officials anticipate a 10% reduction in the number of people staying in shelters by promptly facilitating their transfer to other locations if they do not wish to remain in Chicago.
