New York City's mayor is introducing restrictions on migrant buses entering the city after 14 buses arrived in one day and there is no end to the crisis in sight.
Eric Adams held a virtual news conference with the mayors of Chicago and Denver on Wednesday, and all three Democrats called on the Biden administration to do more to help and accused the federal government of failing them.
Adams said his city — which has received more than 161,000 migrants sent north from the border on buses since August 2022 — is following Chicago's lead and imposing restrictions.
Buses carrying migrants must give 32 hours notice of their arrival and are only allowed to arrive Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. They are only allowed to drop migrants off at designated places.
Any buses that violate the rules could be confiscated. The bus companies will be charged with a Class B misdemeanor, will be fined and may face lawsuits.
“We cannot allow buses full of people who need our help to arrive at any time of the day or night without warning,” he said.
“Not only does this prevent us from providing proper assistance, it also puts those who have already suffered so much at risk.”
New York City Mayor Eric Adams held a joint news conference Wednesday with the mayors of Chicago and Denver, who are also struggling to deal with the surge in migrant arrivals
Migrants in New York City are seen being bussed to shelter after arriving from Texas
He said it was about “ensuring the safety of migrants.”
Adams said the chaos was caused by Greg Abbott, the Republican governor of Texas, who sent the buses to get Democrats to share his state's fight. But he warned bus companies not to be complicit.
“We really urge bus operators and businesses not to participate in Gov. Abbott’s actions,” Adams said.
“We want them to take the appropriate actions to take responsibility by taking those actions during the hours we allotted.” These asylum seekers on the buses are not being punished at all. This has no impact on passengers on the buses.”
Adams noted that a plane chartered by Abbott was sent to New York City on Tuesday but was unable to land at JFK Airport due to fog. The plane was diverted to Philadelphia and the migrants were taken by bus to New York, where they arrived in the city at 1 a.m. Wednesday.
Adams said it caused “chaos” and was cruel and unfair.
“We are once again experiencing record numbers of border crossings at our southern border,” Adams said, citing the nearly 10,000 people crossing illegally from Mexico every day.
“What this means for us in New York City is that the number of migrants arriving on our doorstep is increasing.”
Adams said he was “proud” to be working with Brandon Johnson of Chicago and Mike Johnston of Denver to share ideas and tactics to deal with the surge.
Migrants are seen arriving in Chicago on a bus from Texas
Chicago has spent $138 million on the crisis, which is expected to worsen as temperatures fall over the winter
Johnson said about 15,000 asylum seekers were crammed into shelters across the city after arriving on buses from the U.S.-Mexico border, particularly from Texas
A young migrant girl eagerly shows what she made of the overnight snowfall in a small tent community in Chicago
Chicago's mayor claimed that since his election seven months ago, poor coordination between federal, state and local governments has worsened the crisis
Chicago now requires buses to drop off migrants during approved weekday hours and at a designated migrant drop-off zone in Chicago's West Loop, with arrivals limited to two per hour.
The city is suing bus companies and on Dec. 13 approved penalties to impound buses and fine their owners $3,000 if they don't follow Chicago rules limiting arrival time and frequency.
Some bus drivers are skirting the rules by dropping off passengers in Chicago's suburbs instead of in the city.
But Adams said the knowledge sharing is helpful.
“I'm pleased that our teams were able to share the insights they've gained from their work, and I want to thank him (the mayor of Chicago) for that insight and the way he handled this crisis,” Adams said.
“New York City is part of a coalition of cities and counties, and we know how important this moment is.” We are working together to address this national humanitarian crisis.
“I’m proud to be here with my fellow mayors to call with one voice on the federal government to do its part and to tell Gov. Greg Abbott to stop the games and stop using people as political pawns.”
Adams said they are calling for a federal emergency declaration as temperatures drop.
“We need the help of the state and federal governments to resettle the 68,000 migrants currently in our care,” he said, noting that they have been offered food, clothing and shelter, as well as helping them obtain work permits were supported.
Adams said the cost of housing and caring for tens of thousands of migrants is expected to add nearly $5 billion to the city's $107 billion budget this fiscal year and another $6 billion the following year.
Adams has asked all city departments to cut 5 percent of their budgets to cover immigration costs. As a result, some libraries were closed and city locations' opening hours were reduced.
El Paso city officials have been working with state officials to bus more than 17,000 migrants out of the West Texas city
Texas migrant buses
- Over 12,500 migrants to Washington, DC since April 2022
- Over 31,200 migrants to New York City since August 2022
- Over 25,300 migrants to Chicago since August 2022
- Over 3,400 migrants to Philadelphia since November 2022
- Over 11,800 migrants to Denver since May 18th
- Over 1,200 migrants to Los Angeles since June 14th
Source: Governor Greg Abbott's office
The federal government has allocated $135 million to reimburse the city's asylum seeker costs for the current fiscal year, and the state has provided $562 million.
But Adams said the amount wasn't enough.
On Wednesday evening, he told Pix 11 that he was not confident that the federal government would provide more money, even though the refugee crisis had “really escalated” in recent weeks.
About 7,200 migrants have arrived in New York City in the past two weeks, officials said.
“I’m not as optimistic as I was in April of last year,” Adams said.
“I didn’t think we would still be here talking about the support we need.” “We shouldn’t be doing the federal government’s job.”
Chicago has spent $138 million housing migrants.
Texas has so far spent $86.1 million sending migrants to “sanctuary cities” across the country — about $1,650 per person.
“What the state of Texas is doing does not help matters in any way,” Johnson said Wednesday.
“While we recognize that there are significant challenges at the border, sending buses across Illinois and the country is reckless and, quite frankly, dangerous.”