No, he was not lying. Nor did FEMA divert money intended for hurricane helene to use for immigrants. FEMA did administer $640 million in grants from Customs and Border Protection in 2024 and about $364 million in 2023 to cities and counties that serve migrants. However, that program called the Shelter and Services Program, or SSP, is separate from FEMA’s disaster relief fund which is more than $20 billion.
The SSP has a specific budget and is accounted for at the beginning of the fiscal year. At no time is disaster money used for the SSP.