First appearance on Fox: House Republicans are stepping up an ongoing investigation into the White House over its decision to approve a plan to house immigrants on public land in New York City.
Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) and Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.), the top Republican member of the committee's oversight subcommittee, asked a series of new questions and The request for documents was sent to the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Chair Brenda Mallory said in a letter on Monday.
Republican lawmakers say the White House's immigrant housing plan appears to ignore environmental concerns.
The pair launched an investigation in November regarding the environmental approval process for leasing Gateway National Recreation Area's Floyd Bennett Field, a property located in the Brooklyn borough of New York City and managed by the National Park Service, to local governments. issued an initial request for information. For housing immigrants. But Mallory ignored the letter.
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House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman (left) and Rep. Paul Gosar, the top Republican member of the committee's oversight subcommittee. (Getty Images)
“Your silence and lack of response to the committee's letter suggests that CEQ is intentionally engaging in obstruction to frustrate Congress's oversight authority,” Westerman and Gosar wrote in the letter. “This is unacceptable.”
“The American people have a right to transparency, and the Committee will use all available tools to provide effective oversight and fulfill its responsibilities to the American people.”
In September, amid a surge of migrants at the southern border and a related influx into New York City, Department of the Interior (DOI) Agreed to lease a portion of the Floyd Bennett Field property. Authorities then built temporary housing on land along the shores of Jamaica Bay.
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However, Republican leaders pointed out the following before making the decision to lease the property: Democratic New York Governor Kathy Hochul It noted that the DOI itself had argued that such actions likely violated federal law. The governor, who is seeking federal aid to deal with the influx of migrants into the state, said in August that officials had told his office that “we do not authorize the use of shelters on site.” Ta.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul speaks at the State Capitol on February 1, 2023 in Albany, New York. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink, File)
Republicans also expressed concern that the White House Council on Environmental Quality allowed the DOI to bypass the normal environmental review process required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). A 1969 law requires federal agencies to review the environmental impacts of projects and proposals on federal lands before approval.
Westerman and Gosar wrote in November that “despite concerns about the legality of housing people on national park land, the Biden administration will ultimately use national park land to build migrant housing camps.” We have proceeded with plans to install a “Surprisingly, NPS requested and received an alternative arrangement to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act in order to secure the FBF lease.”
The Biden administration has leased federal land at Floyd Bennett Field at Gateway National Recreation Area, managed by the National Park Service, to local governments. The property is being used to temporarily house immigrants. (Getty Images)
They added that national parks are designed for recreational purposes and are “not places to temporarily or permanently house unsheltered people.”
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The ongoing investigation comes as record numbers of migrants continue to flow to the southern border and Republicans are calling on the Biden administration to make structural reforms to secure the border.
More than 302,000 migrants were encountered attempting to cross the US southern border in December, the highest single-month figure on record. Additionally, this number brings the number of encounters in the first quarter of 2024 to 785,000, a record high.
The White House did not respond to requests for comment.
