CHICAGO — Almost four years since buses from Texas began dropping off migrants in Chicago with little to no coordination with local officials, the city’s law department has secured fines against some of the bus companies involved.

Taken together, the fines and default judgements against the bus companies that brought migrants to Chicago total about $441,000, most of which will be donated to the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago, city officials said this week.

Starting in August 2022 under the direction of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, buses carrying migrants from the southern border began arriving in Chicago, sometimes in the middle of the night or during freezing weather. Abbott, a Republican, defended the move as a protest of then-President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, although the actions were widely condemned as cruel by Illinois and Chicago leaders.

The buses frequently arrived in Chicago with no heads up to the city about when they were coming or how many people were on board, leading to thousands of migrants being housed in police stations and other temporary shelters.

In late 2023, the city updated rules around intercity bus drop-offs in an attempt to rein in some of the so-called rogue behavior, including requiring bus companies to obtain prior approval from the city’s transportation commissioner to legally drop people off in the city.

The city’s law department then began filing lawsuits against bus companies that weren’t following the regulations, with potential fines ranging from $2,000-$10,000 for each violation.

City lawyers filed almost 100 related complaints against approximately 27 bus companies, city prosecutor Christine Hake said this week. After a delay stemming from a related federal case, the city has reached settlement agreements in 52 of the cases, with another 43 leading to “default judgements” for companies that didn’t show up to court.

“These violations occurred during a challenging period when some bus operators chose to ignore Chicago’s laws and unloaded new arrivals at unsafe, unapproved locations,” Mary Richardson-Lowry, the city’s corporation counsel, said in a statement. “The city pursued every available enforcement tool, and these penalties make clear that this conduct carries consequences.”

Hundreds of newly arrived migrants seek warmth in CTA warming buses at the “landing zone” in the Near West Side as they await placement in a shelter on Jan. 8, 2024. Credit: Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago

The first bus carrying migrants was sent to Chicago under Abbott’s “Operation Lone Star” in late August 2022, with more buses arriving in the coming weeks and months. Gov. JB Pritkzer at the time said the uncoordinated actions were “sowing chaos” and blasted the drop-offs as a political stunt.

By spring 2023, the rate of buses coming to Chicago had ramped up exponentially, leading to severe overcrowding at police stations that were transformed into makeshift shelters.

The city also set up numerous standalone shelter facilities for the new arrivals, some of which were criticized for inhumane conditions.

The new arrivals mission continued until the end of 2024, by which time the arrival of migrants had slowed dramatically and shelter services were consolidated into the city’s existing shelter system.

As of Dec. 20, 2024, an estimated 51,649 people had arrived in Chicago since the migrant mission began in August 2022, mostly via bus but some on airplanes, according to city data distributed at the time. About 950 buses arrived during that time period, 602 of them at the city’s established landing zone at 800 S. Desplaines St.

While a majority of buses did end up dropping people off at the landing zone, many were still in violation of city rules requiring pre-approval from the transportation commissioner, Hake said, allowing the city to pursue legal action.

“The city’s main intention was to coordinate the new arrivals mission with Texas, but I don’t think Texas had any intention of clearly adhering to the [rules],” Hake said.

Sebastian Gonzalez, 6, and Zoe Torcat, 4, spend time with their family while they, and other migrants from South America, have been sheltering at the Chicago Police 24th District station in Rogers Park, as seen on May 8, 2023. Credit: Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago

One of the bus companies that settled with the city is El Camino Bus Lines Inc., which is headquartered in Houston, according to federal transportation department records.

El Camino dropped off nearly 150 people at the city’s landing zone across three dates in November and December of 2023, all without pre-authorized permission from the transportation department, according to a copy of the settlement agreement.

The company agreed to a $15,000 settlement with the city in December 2025. Block Club was not able to reach El Camino for comment on Thursday.

About $192,000 in settlement fees have been recovered by the city so far, Hake said, with an estimated $260,950 expected in total.

For the 43 cases that resulted in default judgements, the city is owed $181,000. Those cases have been sent to the city’s collections department.

Hake this week said the fines secured by the city represent a measure of accountability for the migrants bussed to Chicago by Abbott and other politicians. Besides the strain the uncoordinated actions put on city workers and local nonprofits, many migrants also arrived in Chicago without coats, hats and other basic resources.

Abbott’s press office this week did not return a request for comment about the settlements.

“Individuals that are displaced like this is a public safety issue,” Hake said, adding that it was “important” for the city to take action against the bus companies.

“Overall, I think it led to a good result, in that we are taking this money, using it to help underserved communities in the metro area, and making sure the city does right by the new arrivals,” she said.