Report: WA Accused of Diverting $340M in COVID Relief Funds to Immigrant Support

Three-and-a-half years after Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee (D) introduced the Immigrant Relief Fund (IRF) and the Food Production Paid Leave Program (FPPLP) to support workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, a recent investigation suggests that federal pandemic funds were funneled to ineligible undocumented immigrants through $1,000 checks, as per Center Square Washington.

As of June 2023, Washington state recorded more than 14,000 COVID-19-related deaths, with undocumented immigrants facing heightened economic instability due to their exclusion from government-sponsored assistance programs available to citizens and those with more secure immigration statuses, according to a report by the WIRF.

The Immigrant Relief Fund offered non-repayable aid to individuals who lacked economic relief from stimulus checks or unemployment benefits. Findings from the Impact Evaluation Survey, completed by community members, reveal that more than 75% of applicants lacked basic healthcare.

Between October 2020 and May 2021, the initial rounds of the Immigrant Relief Fund distributed $127.6 million, benefiting 121,850 applicants with $1,000 grants.

According to a report by the Economic Policy Innovation Center (EPIC), these funds were sourced from a $340 million allocation to Washington under the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to aid state and local responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.

While Washington received a total of $4.4 billion in funding from the ARPA, a 2020 news release from Inslee’s office stated that the IRF would allocate $40 million to assist Washington residents excluded from “federal stimulus programs due to their immigration status.”

Inslee emphasized inclusivity, stating, “We have to ensure that no one in our state is left behind as we fight this pandemic as COVID-19 doesn’t care what your immigration status is.”

“This is the right thing for the well-being of individuals, the health of their colleagues, and the safety of our communities,” the release added.

The Washington State Department of Social and Health Services oversaw funds administration, which announced $1,000 disbursements per eligible individual starting in fall 2020. Subsequently, in April 2021, the Legislature approved checks for immigrants regardless of legal status.

The EPIC report contends that the Biden administration indirectly subsidized undocumented immigration through pandemic relief efforts.

This report emerges amidst ongoing concern over illegal immigration into the U.S., particularly at the southern border, as the Senate deliberates on measures to address illegal border crossings.