CBS News
ICE could release thousands of migrants without more funding from Congress, official says
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is considering downsizing its detention capacity and releasing thousands of migrants from custody due to a budget shortfall that Congress has so far refused to address, a senior agency official told CBS News Wednesday.
Without sufficient funding, officials could be forced to release between 4,000 and 6,000 migrants from long-term immigration detention centers, according to the official, who requested anonymity to discuss internal cost-saving plans.
ICE oversees a network of county jails and for-profit prisons across the U.S. to detain migrants it is seeking to deport, such as those who cross the southern border illegally or immigrants transferred to the agency after being charged or convicted of crimes. As of the end of January, ICE was detaining more than 38,000 immigrants, most of them recent border-crossers, agency data show.
As part of a massive emergency funding request, the Biden administration late last year asked Congress for billions of dollars to fund ICE operations, including deportations, arrests, detention beds and migrant tracking technology. But Republicans in Congress blocked those funds and an accompanying bipartisan border policy agreement forged by the White House and a small group of senators, saying the deal — which included drastic limits on asylum — was not strict enough.
“Tough decisions”
ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images
During a press conference earlier this month, interim ICE head Patrick Lechleitner said the agency would “have to make some tough decisions going forward if we don’t get more supplemental funding.”
The potential release of thousands of migrants, first reported by The Washington Post, is not a certainty. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, could still divert money from other sub-agencies, such as the U.S. Coast Guard, to make up for the budget deficit.
In a statement to CBS News, Erin Heeter, a DHS spokesperson, warned that a “reduction in ICE operations would significantly harm border security, national security, and public safety.”
If there’s not enough funding, Heeter said DHS would “reprogram or pull resources from other efforts” to fund ICE, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, agencies that also asked for billions of dollars in additional funds.
“The Administration has repeatedly requested additional resources for DHS’s vital missions on the southwest border and Congress has chronically underfunded them,” Heeter said. “Most recently, Congress rejected the bipartisan national security bill out of hand, which will put at risk DHS’s current removal operations, put further strain on our already overtaxed workforce, and make it harder to catch fentanyl at ports of entry.”
The budget shortfall also threatens to undermine ICE’s efforts to deport migrants who do not ask for asylum or who are found ineligible for U.S. refuge — a pillar of the Biden administration strategy to reduce the record levels of unlawful border crossings reported over the past years.
While illegal crossings along the southern border plunged by 50% in January after reaching a record quarter of a million in December, migrant arrivals have climbed in February and are expected to increase further in the spring, when migration historically rebounds.
Other parts of the sprawling U.S. immigration system would be also affected by the lack of new funding, DHS officials said. They include border surveillance technology and the processing of legal immigration benefits, such as green cards and asylum cases.
A Federal Emergency Management Agency program that provides money to cities and organizations that house and feed migrants released from DHS custody also ran out of funds last year. Many Republicans objected to the bipartisan border deal’s inclusion of more money for this program, saying it rewards entities they believe are encouraging illegal immigration.
Nicole Sganga contributed reporting.
Amazon
Amazon’s biggest sales event of the year, Prime Day, is right around the corner. But you don’t have to wait for the highly anticipated sale to score deals. Amazon is offering plenty of early Prime Day deals that are available to shoppers right now, and the discounts are pretty solid.
One of our favorite early Prime Day deals is this $299 markdown on Eureka’s E10s robot vacuum and mop combo, a savings of up to 42%. This deal is a steal, as robot vacuums alone (not robot vacuum-mop combos) are quite expensive, with some models retailing for more than $1,000. To ensure you get the greatest savings on the Eureka E10, remember to add the $199 coupon before checkout at Amazon.
Thinking about becoming an Amazon Prime member? We’ve got all your Prime Day 2024 questions answered, with info on key dates and what you need to know to get the best prices on home, fitness gear, tech and more on Amazon.
Eureka E10s robot vacuum and mop: $400 (save $299)
Eureka
The Eureka E10s is a two-in-one cleaning device that will vacuum and mop your floors for you. The robot offers suction power strong enough to be able to lift dust, dirt and hair off the ground, making this a great option for people with pets. This Eureka model can vacuum and mop at the same time, with technology that can identify carpets and rugs. So when your robot vacuum senses that it’s approaching your rug, the mopping pad lifts up to prevent the rug from getting wet.
This robot vacuum can avoid obstacles and map out your home. For a more personalized cleaning, download the corresponding app, which allows you to set up cleaning schedules and no-go zones in your home. And if you have Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, you can control the vacuum with your voice.
The self-emptying Eureka E10s can hold up to 45 days worth of debris in its docking station. You can expect this to run for up to three hours before it needs to be charged back up again.
The Eureka E10s robot vacuum has a 4.1-star rating on Amazon. One reviewer wrote, “I have a black lab and got tired of how much hair was showing up on them despite constant sweeping. I’ve had 3 different robot vacs and this is BY FAR the best. My floors have never been cleaner. Highly recommend.”
Getty Images
If you’ve been searching for an inexpensive way to borrow money lately, you may have found yourself spending a lot of time looking around. That’s because inflation, even though it’s dropped significantly, and the higher interest rates meant to tame it, have caused rates on a multitude of credit options to soar. But if you’re one of the tens of millions of homeowners in the United States right now, you still have one cost-effective alternative to pursue – your home equity.
With a home equity loan or home equity line of credit (HELOC), owners can tap into the equity they’ve accumulated in their homes to then use for any expense they see fit (or to even pay off or consolidate other, higher-interest debt). Like all financial products and services, however, home equity borrowing needs to take place at the right time for it to be truly beneficial for owners. And, this July, could be one of those times. Below, we’ll detail three reasons why you may want to tap into your home equity now.
Start by seeing what home equity loan rate you could secure here today.
3 reasons to access your home equity this July
If you want to truly optimize your home equity borrowing situation, it makes sense to act promptly. Here are three timely reasons to access your equity this July:
You may have a lot to utilize
The average homeowner has around $305,000 worth of equity right now. And while they may not be able to borrow all of that (home equity borrowing is typically capped at 80% to 85% of your overall equity), it still adds up to a sizable amount of money that can be easily accessed with a loan or HELOC.
However, the amount of equity you have is subject to change and could fall or rise in the future, partially based on economic factors out of your control. So it’s beneficial to act now, with home equity levels near record levels. If you wait, and the economics change, you’ll have less to work with than if you had acted this July.
Find out how much home equity you have to access here.
Rates are lower and could drop further
Home equity loan and HELOC rates are both under 10% right now — with the prospect for both to drop even further. A formal cut to the federal funds rate would ensure that rates on both products fall. But another cooling in the inflation rate (the next report comes out July 11) could cause lenders to offer lower rates now in anticipation of an official cut to come later in the year. So this could be an opportune time to act, particularly if you proceed with a HELOC this July, which comes with a variable interest rate that could drop even further (you’ll need to refinance a home equity loan to get a better rate).
The alternatives are (still) too expensive
As mentioned above, the search for cost-effective credit options is an arduous one right now. Credit cards come with rates over 21% right now and personal loans are around 12%. And that’s for qualified borrowers with clean credit histories and high credit scores. If you don’t have both, you may get offered even higher rates than those two averages. With these as the popular alternatives, then, a home equity loan or HELOC may be your cheapest option this July.
The bottom line
While home equity loan and HELOC rates have been lower in recent years, they’ve also been higher. And with the potential for rates to drop even further soon, this July could be a smart time to access your home equity. Not only are homeowners sitting on an average of $300,000 plus worth of equity now, the rates are still lower than popular alternatives and they could fall even further, perhaps before the end of 2024. Just be sure to go into the home equity borrowing process focused and with the ability to pay back what you owe as your home will serve as collateral in these circumstances and you could risk losing it if you can’t repay your debt.
Amazon
Amazon’s biggest sales event of the year, Prime Day, is right around the corner. But you don’t have to wait for the highly anticipated sale to score deals. Amazon is offering plenty of early Prime Day deals that are available to shoppers right now, and the discounts are pretty solid.
One of our favorite early Prime Day deals is this $299 markdown on Eureka’s E10s robot vacuum and mop combo, a savings of up to 42%. This deal is a steal, as robot vacuums alone (not robot vacuum-mop combos) are quite expensive, with some models retailing for more than $1,000. To ensure you get the greatest savings on the Eureka E10, remember to add the $199 coupon before checkout at Amazon.
Thinking about becoming an Amazon Prime member? We’ve got all your Prime Day 2024 questions answered, with info on key dates and what you need to know to get the best prices on home, fitness gear, tech and more on Amazon.
Eureka E10s robot vacuum and mop: $400 (save $299)
Eureka
The Eureka E10s is a two-in-one cleaning device that will vacuum and mop your floors for you. The robot offers suction power strong enough to be able to lift dust, dirt and hair off the ground, making this a great option for people with pets. This Eureka model can vacuum and mop at the same time, with technology that can identify carpets and rugs. So when your robot vacuum senses that it’s approaching your rug, the mopping pad lifts up to prevent the rug from getting wet.
This robot vacuum can avoid obstacles and map out your home. For a more personalized cleaning, download the corresponding app, which allows you to set up cleaning schedules and no-go zones in your home. And if you have Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant, you can control the vacuum with your voice.
The self-emptying Eureka E10s can hold up to 45 days worth of debris in its docking station. You can expect this to run for up to three hours before it needs to be charged back up again.
The Eureka E10s robot vacuum has a 4.1-star rating on Amazon. One reviewer wrote, “I have a black lab and got tired of how much hair was showing up on them despite constant sweeping. I’ve had 3 different robot vacs and this is BY FAR the best. My floors have never been cleaner. Highly recommend.”
