Illinois’ patchwork aid system and uncertain funding leave thousands of migrants in limbo

As Illinois faced sub-zero wind chills last week, thousands of recently arrived migrants slept in precarious situations throughout Chicago and its suburbs – overcrowded shelters, police stations, former convenience stores and churches, to name a few.

Many of these recent arrivals have come to the state with few possessions and in need of food and shelter, which those cities and the state have scrambled to provide amid a lack of federal coordination.

Since migrants began arriving – many bused or flown from Texas and other southern U.S. border states since August 2022 – the state has already allocated more than $500 million to set up emergency services, shelters and other supports. So far, more than 34,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago from Texas alone, though many have since moved onto other states where they’ve been connected with family.

In November, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced another $160 million would be reappropriated from the Illinois Department of Human Services’ budget to create more shelter sites overseen by the city of Chicago, provide direct aid and case management services and to launch an intake center.

But even that plan has not kept pace with the influx of arrivals to Illinois. Now, as lawmakers return to Springfield for their spring legislative session, the question of what to do next hangs heavy in the halls of the state Capitol, with talks of new funding so far not yielding any specific proposals.

“We know this unprecedented humanitarian crisis is going to be critical to discussions on budget and other important issues this session,” House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch said in a statement Tuesday, one day before announcing a nine-member working group to concentrate on the migrant issue.

The more than 34,000 migrants who’ve been bused or flown to Illinois by order of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott represent just a portion of the true number of migrants that arrived in Illinois over that time as the country’s southern border faces an influx of hundreds of thousands of people each month. Migrants are fleeing unstable political regimes and economic chaos in south and central American and Caribbean nations like Venezuela, Honduras, Cuba and Haiti.

State funding so far

So far, more than half a billion dollars has been allocated to address the influx of migrants, according to the governor’s office. That includes $115 million in direct funding to the city of Chicago.

Sometime this month, the state is slated to open a key piece of the $160 million spending plan announced in November: an intake center designed to welcome migrants, provide immediate triage and help them find a more permanent home.

It’s going to be located at the same place as Chicago's “landing zone” facility west of downtown, where bus companies are instructed to drop migrants.

The state also has provided funds directly to local governments to aid migrants seeking legal assistance, health care and shelter. In September, the governor announced a $42.5 million grant program for municipalities around the state to fund aid to migrants who are seeking asylum in the U.S.

So far, five municipalities have received funding: the city of Chicago with the largest share of $30.25 million, along with suburban Lake County, Elgin, Oak Park and downstate Urbana.

On Tuesday, the governor announced another $11 million for cities outside of Chicago that are also caring for migrants. The money is from the $160 million announced in November.

Oak Park received $400,000 through this program. It’s used that money, along with $650,000 in leftover federal American Rescue Plan Act pandemic relief money and $350,000 from Cook County, to provide legal assistance and shelter to migrants.

But the Oak Park aid program’s funding runs out on Feb. 29, at which point the future for the roughly 160 migrants in the suburb – and any arrivals thereafter – becomes somewhat unclear.

With a near total lack of coordination at the federal level, advocates have looked to the state to fill in some financial and administrative gaps.

The Welcome to Illinois Coalition, a group of nonprofits and advocacy groups, has asked the state to provide more funding for long-term housing assistance and legal education. They’ve also called for an expansion of the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults program, which provides state-subsidized health care to some noncitizen residents who are in Illinois without legal permission – a group separate from many of the migrants, who are here seeking asylum in the country.

But the state’s finances for the next fiscal year remain uncertain, and Pritzker has already paused enrollment in the program and expressed doubt about any expansion sought by advocates.

The current fiscal year, which ends June 30, is projected to end with a $1.4 billion surplus – roughly 2.8% of the overall budget – according to the Governor’s Office of Management and Budget. But next year’s budget is projected to have an $891 million deficit.

Possible action in Springfield

On Wednesday, Welch announced what is likely to turn into a key part of the legislative response to the migrant crisis: a “working group” group of nine House lawmakers – all Democrats – led by Rep. Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz, a Democrat from Glenview.

Republicans in Springfield, meanwhile, have called for a stricter stance toward immigration in general.

On Tuesday, a group of four conservative lawmakers announced they were filing legislation that would repeal portions of the TRUST Act, a 2017 state law that bars local law enforcement agencies from participating in federal immigration enforcement, such as by working with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents or by detaining people based on their immigration status.

“Repealing the TRUST Act is absolutely required to solve the Illinois illegal immigration crisis and it’s the right thing to do for the citizens of this state,” Rep. John Cabello, a Republican from Machesney Park, said in a statement.

Individuals seeking asylum, like many of the recently arrived migrants, are generally not subject to deportation through Immigrations and Customs Enforcement action.

Sen. Dave Syverson, a Cherry Valley Republican, on Tuesday criticized the management of two state programs that offer Medicaid-style benefits to some noncitizen residents of Illinois.

“Our focus as a state should be on taking care of our own citizens, especially the most vulnerable, before opening our doors to undocumented individuals from countries all over the world,” Syverson said.

The Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults and Health Benefits for Immigrant Seniors programs, which Syverson proposed cutting back, are designed for people who don’t have legal permission to be in the country and some others. Asylum seekers generally don’t qualify for those programs but do qualify for some federal benefits.

These proposals are unlikely to receive much traction in Springfield, as they are unpopular with Democrats, who hold supermajorities in both legislative chambers.