Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava is proposing the elimination of the county’s Office of New Americans, an company she as soon as helped set up to assist everlasting visa holders on their path to U.S. citizenship.
That’s in keeping with finances paperwork obtained by the Miami Herald by way of a public-records request.
Within the 2015-2019 interval, Miami-Dade County in Florida was dwelling to 864,800 Caribbean immigrants, the very best share amongst all U.S. counties, underlining the broader influence of the proposed cuts on Caribbean People.
The proposal comes as Miami-Dade faces a projected $402 million deficit in its $3.6 billion basic fund finances, which covers key providers like policing, jails, parks, and different departments funded primarily by way of property taxes. To shut the hole, Levine Cava is getting ready a 2026 spending plan that features cuts, layoffs, and potential payment hikes, the Herald experiences.
The Workplace of New People was created throughout Levine Cava’s time as a county commissioner and later made a standalone division underneath the Neighborhood Motion and Human Companies Division after she turned mayor in 2020. The workplace is at the moment staffed by 4 folks — the identical quantity as in 2022 — and assists authorized immigrants with providers together with authorized steerage, citizenship referrals, and assist for visa holders who aren’t on a citizenship monitor. This yr alone, employees are anticipated to deal with about 2,400 service requests.
Nonetheless, the workplace is now on the chopping block as a part of a broader restructuring of the county’s social providers. Neighborhood Motion is about to merge with the Juvenile Companies Division to type a brand new Neighborhood Companies Division.
The Miami Herald experiences that Levine Cava can also be proposing to chop or defund a number of different initiatives she championed, together with:
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The Workplace of Innovation and Financial Improvement, a 17-person crew targeted on enterprise development and inexperienced jobs, together with the county movie workplace.
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37 crammed positions inside the Parks Division, which at the moment employs round 2,300 employees.
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The Workplace of Neighborhood Security, created to deal with gun violence by way of neighborhood outreach and crime discount methods.
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The Mother and Pop small enterprise grant program, which prices the county about $1 million yearly.
Funds paperwork don’t specify how a lot the county would save by slicing the Workplace of New People, nor whether or not any of its capabilities may be absorbed into different departments.
In an announcement final week, Levine Cava acknowledged the issue of the choices being made. “We’ve made tough selections,” she mentioned. “We’ve appeared throughout departments to maximise the worth of each taxpayer greenback. … Subsequent week we are going to suggest a finances that continues to ship on the core providers that residents want and deserve.”
The complete particulars of the 2026 finances are anticipated to be launched this week, with ultimate votes scheduled for September.