COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — The influx of immigrants to Ohio is making national headlines.
WSYX reported on Springfield, Clark County, being flooded with migrants.
According to Attorney General Dave Yost, the federal government is allowing an unlimited number of immigrants to enter Ohio.
He announced Monday that his office is trying to get the situation under better control. Yost said the number of migrants coming to Springfield is putting a strain on the community’s resources for things like education and medical care.
WSYX has been tracking the numbers. In July, we spoke with Springfield Mayor Rob Rue. He told us at the time that the city had an official population of around 60,000.
Rue said that in addition to that number, up to 20,000 immigrants may have moved to Springfield.
In his opinion, this will place a burden on municipal services.
“We need to hire 10 to 15 new employees in each department,” Rue said at the time. “Our school system is overwhelmed. Our health system is overwhelmed.”
When we spoke with Yost on Monday, he reiterated that immigrants coming into the community are not the problem. However, he also said that the influx has become a problem in a short period of time.
“The government enjoys immunity from lawsuits in most cases, but there are some exceptions, such as when it acts pursuant to a law or administrative regulation. That’s why we’re investigating the federal processes that allowed these people to come to our country and settle here long-term,” Yost said.
Yost says he is working on a solution for Springfield, but cannot elaborate on what that will look like at this time.
“I have some ideas, but I’m not ready to talk about them yet because things tend to get ahead of reality, but stay tuned.”
In June, the Biden administration provided immigrants with documents for temporary resident status, typically valid for two years, and changed federal immigration policy to allow each person to bring six other people with them.
On Monday, Lieutenant Governor Jon Husted criticized the Biden-Harris administration’s immigration policies on social media.
While there may be other reasons, he says, temporary employment agencies provide jobs to immigrants, creating a “pipeline” to Springfield.
In his post, the lieutenant governor further said he hopes the media will question Kamala Harris about immigration policy during Tuesday night’s debate.
WSYX has asked Democrats in Ohio for comment.
