DHS finds major violations at Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley shelter

SPECIAL – Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, the South Texas nonprofit long known for immigrant shelters run by Sister Norma Pimentel, was stripped of federal funding and now faces a rare six-year ban after a Department of Homeland Security investigation found major donation violations, according to internal Department of Homeland Security (DHS) documents shared exclusively with Fox News Digital.

The action, taken Nov. 19-20 by FEMA on behalf of DHS, follows months of alerts and data review by auditors who uncovered major inaccuracies, large gaps in immigration records and significant billings outside federally permitted time frames.

The suspension applies only to this affiliate in South Texas; Does not apply to Catholic Charities USA or other Catholic Charities chapters nationwide.

In a formal Notice of Motion to Suspend and Debar, DHS officials accused the organization of presenting immigration data so inconsistently that the agency could not verify whether many of the people it reported serving were included in DHS databases.

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Investigators also alleged at least 248 cases in which the nonprofit billed the government for services outside the 45-day period that federal rules allow for immigrants released from DHS custody.

FEMA concluded that the group gave assurances that its spreadsheets were accurate and compliant, saying the agency’s statements were “inaccurate” or “not entirely accurate,” according to the documents.

The proposed sentence is unusually severe. While federal bans typically last three years, DHS is seeking a six-year ban because of what it describes as a “pervasive” pattern of problems spanning multiple programs and many years.

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Sister Norma Pimentel of the Catholic Charities Division of the Rio Grande Valley is named in the DHS memo. (Leigh Vogel/Getty Images for Concordia Summit)

If final, the designation would separate the organization from most federal funding streams and flag the government-wide Award Management System, alert agencies, and pass-through partners not to award new grants.

Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley (CCRGV) now has 30 days to respond, submit documents or request a meeting to claim “currently responsible.” Otherwise, the six-year ban is likely to come into force.

The DHS findings focus heavily on immigrant intake data the nonprofit presented to justify millions of dollars in payments through FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter-Humanitarian Assistance program (EFSP-H) and the newer Shelter Services Program. FEMA said it asked the group to provide the names, A numbers, countries of origin and evidence of DHS encounters of people it claimed to have helped. In response, the nonprofit told the agency that all immigrants’ A numbers were recorded and claimed its spreadsheets were accurate with a margin of error of 4.99%.

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Outdoor view of Catholic Charities Rio Grande Valley Chapter passing migrants in late 2022. (Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Auditors said the reality was very different. In sample sets reviewed by the agency, A numbers were frequently missing, shortened to four digits, or replaced with phone numbers and other stray entries. Documentation shows error rates reached 21%, 26% and 42% across three spreadsheets. When FEMA tested 100 names, it could not find 61 of them in DHS systems.

Investigators also highlighted the Rio Grande branch’s 45-day history of rule violations. Under federal guidelines, NGOs can only bill immigrants for food, shelter or transportation within 45 days of their release from DHS custody.

FEMA told the agency it found at least 248 cases in which billing dates occurred after that window closed; This has raised concerns that federal dollars are being used for services other than those permitted by law. Such activity could amount to “potential criminal activity,” the agency wrote, but DHS did not say whether it planned to send the case for criminal investigation.

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The documents also mention the nonprofit’s self-published Fiscal Year 2024 audit, which reported “material weaknesses” in internal controls over federal awards, inconsistent procurement procedures and missing documentation for about 5% of sampled recipients. FEMA said corrective action plans were duplicated nearly year after year without meaningful improvements.

Catholic leaders have recently opposed efforts to cut funding. Pope Leo

Pimentel, who runs the Rio Grande Valley branch, has been a national figure in the immigration department for years. The Humanitarian Center once processed more than 1,500 immigrants a day during a period of peak mass transit. He has been publicly praised by the Vatican for his humanitarian work and has opposed a return to the stay-in-Mexico policy, saying families forced to wait in Mexico “are suffering tremendously.”

But his organization also became a political focal point. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has pursued lawsuits against several Catholic immigrant shelters, including a lawsuit against Annunciation House in El Paso, accusing them of encouraging illegal immigration and operating illegal “stash houses.” Earlier this year, a judge blocked Paxton from removing Sister Norma in that separate case.

The suspension now subjects the Rio Grande Valley operation to simultaneous federal and state review. It’s not yet clear whether other local shelters or municipal partners will be able to cover the caseload in South Texas if the nonprofit loses federal funds. CCRGV currently serves far fewer immigrants than in previous years, but remains one of the region’s most important intake points.

DHS did not say when a final decision on the suspension would be made. The organization will continue to operate during the suspension but will not be able to receive new federal awards until the issue is resolved.

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Fox News Digital has reached out to Catholic Charities for comment.

DHS told Fox News Digital that future bans may be possible and that investigations are ongoing.