A program that has sent migrants to various parts of the country has cost the state of Texas more than $100 million, according to recent figures.
According to figures from the Texas Division of Emergency Management, Texas has spent more than $124 million on a program to send migrants northward. This includes sending more than 100,000 migrants who have arrived in a number of major cities across the country.
Texas taxpayers have picked up the tab for almost the entire program, which is voluntary for the migrants themselves.
State Pays Huge Bus Fare Sending Migrants To Sanctuary Citieshttps://t.co/EvxqQ4lqbz
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) February 3, 2024
Some Republicans argue that the program has seen significant results, including a number of Democrats changing their attitude on the current border crisis amid the influx of illegal aliens.
Texas has been joined in the effort by several other states. Arizona began a program of sending migrants to other parts of the country under former Gov. Doug Ducey (R), which was continued under current Gov. Katie Hobbs (D), one of the few Democrats with such a policy.
In addition, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has also sent migrants northward. In one case, Florida paid to have migrants sent to Martha’s Vineyard. Despite residents of the island deriding the decision, the community then had the migrants removed.
Overall, more than six million migrants have arrived in the United States since President Joe Biden took office in 2021. This includes more than 3 million border encounters in 2023, which set a new record.
The number has mostly increased since the Biden administration announced the end to former President Donald Trump’s Title 42 asylum policy last year. December 2023 saw the highest number of such encounters on record, topping 300,000 for the first time.
A number of Democratic Party-led areas have protested the sending of migrants, despite being self-declared sanctuary locations. Some, like Denver and New York City, have begun sending the migrants to other parts of the country. The increased costs of migrants have also sparked a number of budget cuts.
