Immigration Reform & Update 2014: Where are All of the Central American Children Being Placed

The U.S. immigration system was never prepared to handle the thousand's of children that are coming over the U.S.-Mexico border from Central America. According to recent media accounts, immigration officials have been sending children around the country like ping-pong balls, while searching for open beds and available space. 

But according to a report released last week, in reality, while there are children in need of open beds at detention centers, more than 30,000 children have been places with relatives and sponsors. 

"Frequently, children are being apprehended in the border states where their families live and flown thousands of miles to shelters and detention facilities, only to be flown back to the border states where their U.S. journeys started," reports the Washington Post.

Shuffling children from state to state is expensive. HHS, which runs the Office of Refugee Resettlement, has a budget of more than $860 million to cover costs such as housing and feeding the unaccompanied minors. In recent months, federal officials have searched for places to house the children. They have encountered protests and reluctant politicians.

Currently, the government uses a network of about 100 privately operated shelters scattered across the country, with some as far from the border as Virginia, New York and New Jersey.

"Children are also being housed at three converted military sites: Fort Sill, Lackland Air Force Base in Texas and Naval Base Ventura County in California. The military sites have room for 3,000 children. A fourth - Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state - is being considered as housing for 600 children, but plans have not been finalized," the article said.

According to the New York Times, "A total of 30,340 children have been released to sponsors - primarily parents and other relatives - from the start of the year through July 7, according to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which has overseen the care of the children after they are turned over by Customs and Border Protection."

More children have been released in Texas than in any other state, with sponsors there receiving 4,280 children, followed by New York with 3,347. Florida has received 3,181 children and California 3,150. Maryland and Virginia have each also received more than 2,200 children. "

The Associated Press reports that the Central American children end up in places where people from their home countries live. "The numbers mirror well-established migration patterns of Central Americans living in the U.S. Miami-Dade County in Florida is already home to the largest number of Hondurans; followed by Harris County, Texas, which includes Houston; and Los Angeles, according to a Pew Hispanic Center analysis of 2010 census data. Los Angeles is home to the largest number of Salvadorans, followed by Harris County, Texas, and Montgomery County, Maryland."