For Immediate Release: October 25, 2022

Contact: [email protected]

Cities for Action Issues Statement Affirming Commitment to Welcoming Values and Urging Federal Response to Ensure Localities Can Effectively Support Asylum Seekers 

Cities for Action (C4A) is a national coalition of mayors, county executives, and local government representatives who work together to advocate for pro-immigrant policies and programs at the local and federal level. We affirm our longstanding commitment to welcoming all people who seek a new home in our communities including those exercising their legal right to seek asylum. We condemn the manipulative, exploitative, and politically motivated busing and flight schemes that have harmed people who are seeking safety in our country. We stand united as welcoming cities and we will continue to work together to support all of our immigrant, migrant, refugee, and asylum seeking community members. For our municipalities to be able to effectively provide services to our new community members, we respectfully urge support from our federal government partners on the below critical items: 

• Operationalize an intentional and transparent system for coordination and communication about population flows to our states and localities
• Ensure adequate federal funding sources – beyond Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) – for receiving communities to address immediate housing and health-related needs of newly arriving people
• Expedite Employment Authorization Document (EAD) processing to allow newly arrived people – who are eager and able to work – to become self-sufficient as quickly as possible

We call on the Administration to ensure that all asylum seekers are treated with dignity and respect by upholding U.S. asylum laws and living out our values as a nation of immigrants. Taking the actions listed above will be a strong start. We look forward to working together.

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About Cities for Action  

Cities for Action is a coalition of nearly 180 U.S. mayors and county executives working to advocate for and promote civic inclusion of our immigrant communities. Click HERE to see a list of Cities for Action mayors and county executives. To learn more about our work, follow us on Twitter.