Katko, Comer: Biden Administration Using Border Crisis to Help Political Allies

As border conditions worsen, massive contract appears to be funneled to Democrat insiders

WASHINGTON—Today, House Committee on Homeland Security Ranking Member John Katko (R-N.Y.) and House Committee on Oversight and Reform Ranking Member James Comer (R-Ky.), along with Republicans on the House Oversight and Reform and House Homeland Security Committees, wrote U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra regarding a “massive, sole source contract” the Department of Homeland Security awarded to Family Endeavors, Inc. to help manage the surge of unaccompanied minors at the border. The questionable contract was awarded to Family Endeavors, Inc. after a member of the Biden-Harris Transition team started working there, and it amounts to more than 12 times the annual budget of the nonprofit.

“As the crisis at the border continues to grow increasingly worse by the day, the Biden Administration fails to provide any confidence in its ability to manage this disorder. The questionable decision to award a massive, no-bid contract to the nonprofit Endeavors raises many questions including how an organization with no experience working with ICE could win a non-compete contract. Not only did ICE choose not to conduct an open competitive process in awarding the contract, but there have been far too many concerning reports of alleged conflicts of interest between Endeavor’s leadership and the Biden Administration. There are many questions that need to be answered and the American people deserve transparency,” said Ranking Member John Katko.

“President Biden’s open borders policies created the crisis at our southern border and now his administration appears to be exploiting it by funneling a massive, no-bid contract to a nonprofit linked to their transition team. The Biden Border Crisis is encouraging human smuggling and illegal immigration, directly endangering the lives of families and children. President Biden and Vice President Harris haven’t spent a second at the border, but they are spending hundreds of millions in taxpayer dollars to reward political allies. This is wrong, and Secretary Becerra needs to provide information to the American people about this suspicious contract,” said Ranking Member Comer. 

The Oversight and Homeland Security Republican lawmakers are requesting all documentation and communications from HHS regarding this dubious sole source contract awarded to Family Endeavors be provided to the committees by May 5, 2021.

The letter is available here.