CNS News– A recent investigation by 13 Investigates has revealed significant expenditures by the state of Texas for transporting migrants via charter flights. According to the findings, Texas was billed a total of $845,458 for four charter flights that relocated migrants from Texas border towns to various cities across the United States.
This initiative, part of Governor Greg Abbott’s strategy to alleviate the burden on border towns, began with bus transportation to Democratic-led cities in April 2022 and has since evolved to include air travel. The flights, intended to send migrants to ‘sanctuary cities’ like Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, and Rockford, Illinois, have brought financial scrutiny upon the state.
For instance, a December 19, 2023, flight operated by iAero Airways, carrying over 120 migrants from El Paso to Chicago, cost the state $135,000. This amounts to an approximate cost of $1,000 per migrant. Similarly, a flight on December 26 by Zephyr Aviation, LLC, billed the Texas Division of Emergency Management $227,427 for transporting over 200 migrants from El Paso to New York, a trip that included an unexpected diversion to Philadelphia.
Moreover, the state faced bills of $247,926 and $235,105 for flights on January 2, 2024, from El Paso to Philadelphia and from San Antonio to Rockford, respectively. These flights, managed by Virginia-based Zephyr Aviation, LLC, carried over 300 asylum seekers.
13 Investigates discovers Texas was billed $845,458 for four migrant charger flights https://t.co/Ben4joat7W
— ABC13 Houston (@abc13houston) January 20, 2024
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Since the inception of this migrant transportation program, Texas has bused over 100,000 migrants to six different U.S. cities, incurring a total expenditure of $89 million from July 2022 to October 2023. New York City, Chicago, and Denver have been among the primary destinations for these migrants.
Governor Abbott has framed “Operation Lone Star” as a necessary response to the Biden Administration’s alleged failure to secure the border. However, the program has generated controversy, with some cities like Chicago taking legal action against unpermitted migrant buses, imposing fines, and even towing vehicles.
The financial and logistical implications of this program continue to be a topic of debate, highlighting the complexities of managing migrant flows and the interplay between state and federal policies in the U.S. immigration system.
