El Paso Mayor: Disaster declaration will allow city to prepare for end of Title 42

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Mayor Oscar Leeser said Sunday that his decision to declare a state of emergency for the city was made so that the community could prepare for the expected lifting of Title 42 on May 11.

Last week, Mayor Leeser said the border community is "going to see something, based on all of the information we've received, that we haven't seen in El Paso. Whether it was 2019 or December of this year, it's really going to take a lot of work from all of our teams to be prepared."

Officials tell ABC-7 the crisis is perpetuated by misinformation.

"As we talk to some of these asylum seekers, they're waiting for May 11. May 11, they believe, will be the day that they can come without any documentation, they can come into the United States and continue to move on into their path, into their next destination, which is one of the which is really one of the furthest thing from really what's going to happen," said Mayor Leeser.

The mayor said the goal is for migrants who go through processing will wait one to two days, sometimes three, in shelters in El Paso before moving on to their next destination.

But Deputy City Manager Mario D'Agostino said the city's transportation systems are limited.

While the possibility of Title 42 ending looms overhead, Title 8 will still be in place.

Under Title 8, "there will be a registration and there will be a record. And once that record is, you will be sent back and you will not be able to come back and seek asylum for the next five years," said Mayor Leeser. Title 42 does not keep record of who tries to enter the U.S.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.