(RNS) — The Department of Homeland Security has moved to bar Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley from receiving federal funds for six years, targeting one of the nation’s most prominent Catholic Charities affiliates and its internationally known executive director, Sister Norma Pimentel, a Missionaries of Jesus sister named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people of 2020 and dubbed by media outlets as Pope Francis’ favorite nun.
DHS is accusing the Brownsville, Texas-based nonprofit of submitting inconsistent migrant data and billing the government for services provided to migrants beyond the federal 45-day limit, according to reporting by Fox News Digital on Nov. 27, citing exclusive DHS documents shared with the outlet.
In a Nov. 28 statement, Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley confirmed they are facing a temporary suspension of federal funding and said, “all funding provided by DHS was used to care for individuals who were brought to CCRGV by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.”
The DHS documents reported by Fox show that the agency is seeking to bar Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley from federal funds for six years, significantly beyond the standard three years. They also say that Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley has 30 days to respond to the proposed debarment from receiving federal funds.
“CCRGV is committed to compliance with federal grant r …