Yuma Mayor Nicholls focused on economic effects of immigration crisis

On Thursday, the U.S. Conference of Mayors gathered in El Paso, Texas to talk about the immigration issues they’re facing along the border.

Mayor Nicholls said the meeting gave the mayors a chance to voice the concerns of each border community from their perspective.

The Acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Kevin McAleenan , was open to answering all the mayors’ questions.

Mayor Nicholls spoke on the economic effects of reassigning government officials to work at processing facilities.

He said, ” The mayor in El Paso is concerned that his ports haven’t been fully staffed in years. We have a similar issue [in Yuma] as we have allocated positions, but they are not all filled. ”

As agriculture season is right around the corner, Nicholls’ major concern is finding a balance in personnel and resources.

” When we start getting more commerce through the ports, and we start getting more people coming back and forth every day for the fields, the 15,000 people that do that. If we’ve taking customs officials out of the ports for other functions, it’s going to make those wait times excessive, ” Nicholls said.

In response, DHS told Nicholls that they’ve hired 12,000 new employees intending to fill those positions.

Another concern Mayor Nicholls brought to the table was funding.

Will the local communities and non-profits be reimbursed for the millions of dollars spent to address the humanitarian crisis at the southern border?

He said McAleenan told him, “It’s not clear right now, and [ McAleenan ] promised to get back to us on how it’s going to work. [DHS] is working out the details on how to apply for it, but it’s going to be through a FEMA type grant process.”

Nicholls is working with Senator McSally’s office to get a head start on Yuma’s application for that grant because funds will be distributed to cities on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Ultimately, mayors of border cities are calling on Congress to make some changes

” The asylum laws need to be updated to be more responsive. So those seeking asylum can actually get it. They can get it quickly. And those that are not qualified, they too, early on, will know that it’s something they will not be granted and return to their home country. ”

A day spent at a migrant processing facility is nothing new to Mayor Nicholls.

He described the processing facilities in El Paso as very similar to the ones in the Yuma area, saying, ” It’s not a resort but it’s appropriate for the situation. ”

However, for the mayors and politicians who may have never visited a detention/processing center before, Nicholls expressed how it’s a much different environment than most Americans are used to.