Immigration and Customs Enforcement scrapped two programs for migrants over budgetary reasons in recent months, determining that the benefits were not worth the “immense cost.”
The agency notified congressional lawmakers last week that it will no longer enroll migrants in its non-detained docket in its Wraparound Stabilization Service (WSS) and Young Adult Case Management (YACMP) system.
Both programs were launched with the goal of getting a larger percentage of the more than 7 million migrants in ICE’s non-detained docket to comply with their release conditions.
“ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations [ERO] notes the challenge with the WSS was its immense cost with little improvement,” the agency wrote in a letter to Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and more than a dozen other lawmakers, obtained by Fox News.
“As a result, ERO determined WSS was not cost effective enough to continue paying for these services when they did not benefit ICE or help the agency further its mission,” the letter continued.
WSS, started in February 2020, offered migrants released into the country access to “services that provide psychosocial and behavioral health support for vulnerable participants and their families who would benefit from additional stabilization services.”
ICE noted that the program, which stopped referrals in July, only resulted in a 2% higher compliance rate compared to those not enrolled.
The YACMP program, which offered 18- and 19-year-old migrants legal services, screenings, referrals to social service programs and human trafficking screenings in 16 cities, was also shuttered.
“In addition to fiscal limitations, a review of the program revealed that YACMP does not align with ERO’s mission or priorities,” ICE wrote. “In short, ERO took steps to realign or stop using programs to address the budget challenges facing the agency.”
The agency said it decided in June not to renew a vendor contract YACMP, which launched in 2023.
The letter came in response to a May request from congressional lawmakers for more information about ICE’s “Alternatives to Detention” program – a process that generally requires migrants to submit to GPS tracking or report their whereabouts on a smartphone app after they’re released into the US.
ICE argued in its letter that the program was “an efficient and effective” program for keeping track of non-detained migrants and ensuring compliance.
The agency noted that 98.6% of migrants enrolled in an ICE tracking program appeared at their court hearings overall, while 90.4% appeared for final hearings.
ICE also informed lawmakers that in fiscal year 2024, 3,913 migrants out of the 181,000 enrolled in “Alternatives to Detention” were charged with crimes, resulting in 688 convictions – including 10 for sex offenses and two for homicide.
