8:01 AM,
Dec 25, 2014 • By JERYL BIER
Just two days before Christmas, the
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) took the first step to prepare
for a possible "surge" of unaccompanied minors in 2015. HHS posted a "Sources Sought" notice to gather
information on "options for contract surge capacity to shelter and
care" for children who enter the country on their own. The Homeland
Security Act of 2002 placed the responsibility for such children on HHS instead
of the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
At this point, HHS is not estimating
the number of children for which care may be needed in the coming year:
No decisions have been made
regarding the need for surge capacity in 2015, but ORR is exploring options
available should the need arise. The purpose of the temporary structures with
staffing and services is to identify agencies capable of standing-up soft-sided
structures, trailers, or other temporary structures that could shelter
100-2,500 children on federally leased or owned land.
The
Washington Post reported in October that Department of Homeland Security
secretary Jeh Johnson placed the fiscal 2014 total of unaccompanied children
at 68,434. After an enormous surge in the summer months, the numbers fell
quickly in the fall. It is not yet clear if President Obama's immigration
actions announced in late November have had any impact on that trend.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/feds-begin-preparing-possible-2015-surge-unaccompanied-children-across-border_822454.html?AID=7236
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