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Santa Ana council hears surge in requests for immigrant emergency aid; city looks to reallocate salary savings
Summary
City staff reported the Ayudas In Fronteras emergency assistance program has served about 101 households so far; council members and community groups urged the city to add more funding after recent federal immigration enforcement actions. Staff said first-quarter salary savings could provide roughly $100,000–$150,000 and promised a 90-day update.
The Santa Ana City Council on Wednesday received an update on Ayudas In Fronteras, the city’s emergency tenant-and-utility-assistance program for immigrant households, and discussed locating additional funds after recent federal immigration enforcement in the city.
City staff reported that the program has assisted 101 households (198 individuals): 81 households received utility assistance only, five received rental assistance only and 15 received both rent and utility support. Council members and public speakers said demand rose after ICE activity in Santa Ana and urged the city to expand the fund immediately.
The program matters because families who lose a breadwinner to detention face immediate housing and food insecurity, council members and community groups said. Hector Bustos, president of the Santa Ana Unified School District board, told the council that within the district 67 applications were submitted to the program; 49 were funded or withdrawn and 18 were left unfunded because resources ran out. “We still have 22 more families that we’ve identified that didn’t even get to apply because these funds have been exhausted,” Bustos said.
Mayor Meskwah requested staff identify additional sources and proposed an immediate supplemental allocation. City Manager’s office staff said they are evaluating first-quarter salary savings across departments and estimated a near-term ability to reallocate roughly $100,000–$150,000 for the program. “If we look across city agencies for first-quarter salary savings, we should be able to come out with some 100, 150,000,” a city manager staff member said.
Council members asked that staff return with a formal item and financial details and that staff follow the same reporting cadence used previously — a 90-day update on program take-up and remaining need. Several council members asked the city manager to prioritize $150,000 if feasible; the manager’s office confirmed it will bring back a recommendation and return with an update within 90 days.
Community groups asked the council to make the program simpler and faster. Tanya Navarro, an organizer with Chispa and member of the OC Rapid Response Network, urged the council to “expand the fund by at least $500,000 and move towards restoring the full $1,000,000 from the city’s $74,000,000 reserve fund” and to prioritize households where breadwinners were detained.
Council members expressed support for additional funds but also emphasized the need for an accountable process that documents applicant eligibility and speed of delivery. The city manager said applicants undergo intake and verification and that file documentation is retained for every household that receives assistance.
Mayor Meskwah moved, and Council Member Penalosa seconded, a motion to receive and file the staff report; the council voted 6–0 (one council member absent) to receive the update. The council asked staff to return with recommended funding sources and a 90-day progress report.
The council did not adopt an immediate appropriation in the meeting but directed staff to identify salary-savings transfers and to return with a formal recommendation as soon as feasible.
