Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., said Thursday that U.S. Border Patrol will start moving 500 migrants per month to two counties in Florida beginning next week and “releasing them pending an asylum hearing.”
“Unlawful arrivals are overwhelming our system. Now I have just been informed by [Palm Beach] Sheriff that starting next week Border Patrol will begin transporting 500 migrants a month from border to [Broward] & [Palm Beach Florida], & releasing them pending an asylum hearing,” Rubio tweeted Thursday morning.
CNN recently received photos from McAllen, Texas Border Patrol station that show migrant children sleeping outside on the ground. On Wednesday, the Washington Post reported that a two-year-old child had died in El Paso, the fourth death of a migrant child who was apprehended at the Southeast border since December.
Broward Mayor Mark Bogen told NBC 6 in Miami on Thursday that the Trump Administration will send two planes per week with 270 migrants on board who will be placed in equal measure in the two counties.
"This is a humanitarian crisis. We will do everything possible to help these people," Bogen said. "If the President will not provide us with financial assistance to house and feed these people, he will be creating a homeless encampment."
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said he was notified of the plans by the Miami-based office of the U.S. Border Patrol, and that a total of 1,000 people per month would be brought to the two counties from the El Paso, Texas, area. He said immigrant parents and children would be processed in both Florida counties, given a notice to appear in court and then released into the community.
The federal government has run out of space to process the thousands of immigrants who have been arriving at the border, forcing them to fly migrants to Border Patrol facilities in other locations that have room.
The migrants are typically processed, released and given a court date in a city where they plan to reside, often with family members. Once the immigrants are released, nonprofit organizations in other cities have been stepping in to provide meals and bus tickets to their destinations.
U.S. authorities have already been using buses and aircraft to move migrants to cities both on and away from the border, including Phoenix; Albuquerque, New Mexico; San Antonio and Colorado.
Despite the practice being widespread amid the recent surge of immigrants, Florida leaders from both parties reacted with alarm at the development and put the blame on the Trump administration.
Bogen warned that the influx would strain the county's social services and be harmful for immigrants stranded without money, housing or knowledge of the city. He said officials are reaching out to nonprofits and businesses to find resources and other support.
"If the President will not provide us with financial assistance to house and feed these people, he will be creating a homeless encampment," Bogen said. "I would suggest that we bring them to the Trump hotels and ask the President to open his heart and home as well."
Democratic Florida Congressman Ted Deutch said he was unable to get federal officials to clarify the Florida plans. He urged the Customs and Border Protection agency to brief Congress on the situation and what help the federal government would provide.
Rubio, after saying he'd been briefed by the Palm Beach County sheriff, wrote a letter to the acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, Kevin McAleenan, urging him not to transport any undocumented migrants to Florida before clarifying the arrangements and conferring with local officials on their needs to receive the influx.
Officials at U.S. Border Patrol offices in Miami and Washington did not immediately return phone calls and emails seeking comment.
In April alone, the Border Patrol apprehended nearly 99,000 people for crossing illegally, with more than two-thirds being unaccompanied children and adults traveling with children. There is also a massive backlog of people on the Mexican side waiting for months for their chance to apply for asylum, including thousands of Cubans in Ciudad Juarez.
President Donald Trump suggested last month he was considering releasing immigrants into so-called "Sanctuary Cities" to punish Democratic congressional foes for inaction on the border.
Although the Justice Department has in the past listed Broward and Palm Beach as sanctuary jurisdictions — and both are Democratic strongholds — officials in both counties have maintained they are complying with federal immigration enforcement requests.
Administrators in Broward and Palm Beach planned to have a strategy session. Palm Beach County Mayor Mack Bernard said he would reach out to Gov. Ron DeSantis, saying that the burden on his county would be "humongous."
The governor's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
María Rodriguez, executive director of Florida Immigration Coalition, said the group has been told of the relocation and is trying to come up with a plan.
"We will support and welcome refugees no matter where they come from," Rodriguez said.
Material from the Associated Press was used in this story.