OAN's Brooke Mallory
12:10pm – Friday, January 12, 2024
In Brunswick, Maine, a new taxpayer-funded initiative will provide free housing for two years to undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers as the country continues to struggle with food, housing and support for the influx of foreigners. It is intended to.
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The number of illegal immigrants entering the United States has continued to rise in recent months, posing many challenges for officials in every American city to allocate resources to them.
Immigrants and resident immigrants have complained to reporters that they are struggling to find consistent accommodations, especially in areas where housing is already scarce for tax-paying Americans.
The vast majority of them are staying in hotels and shelters across the country, but one town in Maine is launching a new immigration program that will offer applicants lots of free accommodation on a first-come, first-served basis.
According to the Maine Press Bureau WCSH-TV, Brunswick, Maine, hopes to provide at least 60 brand-new furnished apartments for the influx of immigrants, 24 of which have already been built. The apartments will be specifically designed for “illegal immigrants.” [foreigners] They are waiting up to a year for work permits. ”
The Maine Housing Authority is in charge of the program, local newspapers reported.
The state will reportedly use funds authorized by the state Legislature to cover the rent costs of all immigrants interested in participating in the free housing program. WGME report. State officials say the program has “enough funding to cover up to two years of rent.” But if immigrants find work, they will pay “30 percent of the rent.”
How states determine whether immigrants are employed or have some form of income is unclear and unreported.
After two years of a program for immigrant families and singles accessing free immigrant housing, Developers Collaborative will reportedly offer market-rate and affordable housing units that undocumented aliens can apply for. ing.
It has also not been determined whether Maine officials ultimately plan to change the program's rules to allow for “stays in excess of two years, if necessary.”
said Dan Brennan, executive director of the Maine Housing Authority. WCSH He said the initiative is “a unique solution to a very exciting opportunity in our state.”
“There are thousands of people coming to Maine who want to make Maine their home. We're doing everything we can to help that situation,” he told the news station. .
When Brunswick's official waiting list for free housing apartments was announced in May 2023 at local shelters and hotels housing migrants, more than 250 families applied and officials are working to build more apartments. It was reported that the opening date had to be postponed. times record.
According to 2022 statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, Brunswick has a population of approximately 21,931.
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