One year ago today, Governor Abbott of Texas sent the first bus of migrants from the southern border to Washington, DC as part of a publicity stunt aimed at Biden. In response, the DC community formed the Migrant Solidarity Mutual Aid Network (MSMAN), a group of organizations and volunteers dedicated to welcoming migrants arriving to the city. The Network stepped up in the absence of the local government and established non-profits — showing up to receive buses at all times of day and night, booking transportation, sorting donations, finding housing, and more. A year later, MSMAN continues to support the over 1,500 migrants who have chosen to make DC their home, as they continue to face federal and local barriers to resettlement.

On Thursday, October 20th, over 60 migrants and advocates testified in opposition to the Migrant Services and Supports Act as it stands. They made clear that though this bill is meant to support migrants bused to DC from Texas and Arizona, in reality it is deeply harmful and will have broad impacts on immigrants and refugees in DC. Title I of the bill creates the Office of Migrant Services (OMS). Glaringly missing from OMS’ mandate is any long-term support for migrants who choose to settle in DC. The migrants who testified on Thursday made it clear that they are not looking for special treatment — just the support and services they’re legally entitled to. In their testimony, many migrants highlighted the urgent need for housing and medical care, in addition to identification and documents to prove residency in the district.

On Tuesday, Mayor Bowser’s Migrant Services and Supports Emergency Act passed in the council, along with minor amendments introduced by Councilmember Nadeau. This legislation will create the Office of Migrant Services (OMS). Which, despite being housed under the Department of Human Services (DHS), will have an entirely “separate stream” of services for newly arrived asylum-seekers, but details of said services are minimal in the legislation and absent for migrants who remain in the district longer than thirty days. Additionally, Title II of the legislation passed this week includes provisions that specifically exclude migrants from accessing DC’s homeless services by amending the Homeless Services Reform Act (HSRA). “The Migrant Services and Supports Act reads like a bill introduced in May, not a bill written after five months of buses arriving in DC,” said Alejandra S. Sky, an organizer with the Migrant Solidarity Mutual Aid Network.