Former Army Reserve Center in Bryan.
Congressman Bill Flores has received confirmation that illegal immigrant children will not be housed at the former Bryan Army Reserve center.
The confirmation came from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which has been lining up shelter for the tens of thousands of children, coming mostly from Central America.
Flores had forwarded to HHS and the Department of Defense letters of concern from city and school officials and state lawmakers.
The Congressman said they were first notified June 26th that the former armory was among federal surplus properties being examined as possible locations.
Flores says he is not aware of any other sites in his district to house UAC’s, an acronym that stands for Unaccompanied Alien Children.
Flores says he recognizes the humanitarian crisis at hand, but at the same time he doesn’t want to create new crises while trying to address the current issue.
He encourages those who want to help the children to contact a number of a relief agencies that are doing yeoman’s work.
Flores says between 80 to 90 percent of the children who have been interviewed say they’re not coming to the United States because of any dangers in their home countries. Flores says it’s because parents were advised their children would be allowed to stay in the U.S., become citizens, and receive benefits.
Flores says instead of supporting President Obama’s $3.7 billion dollar funding request, he is part of an effort by the Texas congressional delegation that is working on a smaller appropriation.
Flores says it will process the children who are here and eventually return them to their parents.
Flores says the proposed legislation also calls on Obama to stop what he’s been doing under a deferred action memo he wrote in June 2012, close a loophole in a 2008 trafficking law Flores says the President has exploited to let the children stay in the U.S., and improve border security.
The campaign to not open the former Army Reserve center also included letters from the mayors of Bryan and College Station to Governor Perry.
Click HERE to read the letter Congressman Flores sent to the Defense Department.
Click HERE to read the letter College Station Mayor Nancy Berry sent to Governor Perry.
Click HERE to read the letter Bryan Mayor Jason Bienski sent to Governor Perry.
Click below for comments from Congressman Bill Flores, visiting with WTAW’s Bill Oliver.