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New York City began a new push to evict migrants from its shelter system on Wednesday as the city enters a more aggressive phase in its effort to ease the strain that the migrant crisis has placed on the citys budget and shelters.

The first wave of evictions will affect adult migrants who were given 30-day notices a month ago as part of the citys push to enforce stricter time limits on shelter stays. Adult migrants who wish to stay longer can receive an extension if the city determines they meet one of several exceptions.

The new policy, which goes into effect on a rolling basis, will initially apply to about 250 migrants this week. City officials said on Wednesday that they had denied extension requests to 74 migrants and had granted 118 extensions so far. Those denied extensions will be forced to leave the shelters.

As the rules are phased in, they will eventually cover all 15,000 adult migrants that the city is paying to house in an array of hotels, tent dormitories and other buildings under the citys right-to-shelter mandate.

The administration of Mayor Eric Adams, a Democrat, is betting that the threat of evictions will incentivize migrants to find other housing arrangements and help reduce the overall shelter population of 65,000, most of whom are families with children. Officials are also seeking to make space for the hundreds of migrants still arriving from the southern border each week.

I dont know when the crisis is going to be over, Anne Williams-Isom, the deputy mayor leading the citys migrant response, said on Tuesday. We are trying to exit people out of the system so that we can have some stability and then set up something that is more permanent.

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New York Begins a New Wave of Evictions From Migrant Shelters - The New York Times

Denver city officials have just released a 22-page guide that comprehensively details how to house, feed, clothe, employ, and otherwise subsidize and reward illegal immigration. Its based on the citys own experience as a sanctuary jurisdiction and now theyre anxious to share their success with municipal colleagues across thecountry.

In fact, theyre absolutely giddy about theirnew guide:

Introduction: Welcome to the City and County of Denvers Newcomers Playbook! We are thrilled that you are interested in creating a welcoming environment for migrants in your city. As part of Denvers welcoming approach, we use the term newcomers to refer to migrants, recognizing that they are new to our city and embracing a more inclusive language. This playbook is a guide divided into two sections, offering recommendations and strategies for successfully integrating newcomers into yourcity.

As instruction manuals go, the Playbook is a marvel of thoroughness; a turnkey to-do list for any public official wanting to launch a sanctuary jurisdiction, or to take their existing sanctuary policies to a whole new level. The Playbook details how to establish migrant intake centers; ensure efficient transportation; set up budgets; assign individualized case workers; provide housing and health care; develop networks with volunteers, nonprofits, and community based organizations; and locate local, state and federal funding sources. Meticulous in its detail, the Playbook also offers a voluminous check list of guest-related questions sanctuary administrators carefully consider suchas:

If showers and laundry services are not available at the site, how will you ensure these services are accessible? Will you bring in shower trailers and laundry trucks or provide resources for guests to find these services on their own? How many staff members are needed for each shift to support the guests, and what communication infrastructure is necessary for consistent communication between decision-makers and shelter workers? How will you ensure that the necessary resources to assist guests in their journey are available and ready to beused?

The Playbook hasnt overlooked anything, even offering creative workarounds for newcomers lack of Social Security numbers, and the difficulty that presents when the city rents themapartments:

If an online application requires an SSN to move forward in the online portal, we have entered 123-45-6789. If a landlord insists on an SSN, look for a differentapartment.

Denver definitely follows its own advice. The city offers migrantsamong other thingssix months of rental, food and utility assistance, a free computer, a prepaid cell phone and metro bus passes. We designed this program to be holistic, saidSarah Plastino, director of the citys NewcomerProgram.

Since December 2022, nearly 40,000 illegal aliens arrived in Denver -more per capita than any other city in the nation, costing more than $42 million, althoughsome put the figure closer to $100 million. As is the case in so many other sanctuary cities, Denvers welcoming policies have resulted in housing shortages, public encampments, spiralingschool costs and a dramatic rise ofuncompensated care at local hospitals. City resources are nearly depleted,forcing several departments, including police and fire, to slash their budgets to free up funds to deal with theinflux.

Despite the chaos, Denver feels compelled to peddle their Newcomer Playbook to other American city officials. Its lengthy guide concludes with an encouraging message that other cities follow theirlead:

We hope that the City and County of Denvers Newcomers Playbook proves to be a valuable resource for other cities that are embarking on a new chapter in supporting newcomers and providing these services on a largescale.

Maybe it isworth a look. Public officials who want law and order and fiscal solvency in their cities should closely examine what Denver does and then make sure they do the exactopposite.

Original post:
Your City Doesn't Have a Migrant Crisis Yet? Just Ask Denver for its New How-To Guide. | FAIRUS.org - Federation for American Immigration Reform

When the Tusk government came to office in December, many activists had been hoping it would bring a new approach to the Belarusian border situation, especially as the parties that make up the coalition previously criticised Law and Justice (PiS) for its handling of the migration crisis since 2021.

That crisis was initially fomented by the Belarusian regime, which over the last three years has lured tens of thousands of migrants mainly from the Middle East, Afghanistan and Africa to Minsk, bussed them to its borders with the EU, and herded them towards the border. In the last year and a half, migrants have increasingly arrived first in Russia before moving westwards, highlighting Russias involvement in creating this new migratory Eastern Borders Route.

As if to signal a change in direction, Prime Minister Tusk appointed an academic specialising in migration, Maciej Duszczyk, to the post of deputy interior minister in charge of the matter. Duszczyk not only began work on a much-needed comprehensive migration policy for the country, but also announced an end to what he called non-humanitarian pushbacks.

I assure you that the Border Guard no longer conducts pushbacks like those seen under Law and Justice since 2023, Duszczyk told Gazeta Wyborcza in an interview in early 2024, shortly after his appointment. As a migration researcher, I have seen films with pushbacks conducted in a very non-humanitarian way. Such actions cannot take place in a democratic state that respects human rights.

In March, the Polish Border Guard set up so-called search-and-rescue teams, formed to seek out and assist migrants whose life and health might be in danger on the border.

Yet according to Katarzyna Czarnota of the Helskinski Foundation for Human Rights, there is a legitimate risk that the setting up of these search-and-rescue teams actually increases the number of migrants being disappeared on the Polish-Belarusian border, referring to those migrants who are pushed back, die or their fate becomes unknown.

Czarnota told BIRN that based on observations by activists at the border, Polish officials whether from the search-and-rescue teams or regular border guards might indeed now be more open to searching for migrants than during the time of the previous PiS government. However, upon finding them, beyond checking their vitals, the conduct remains the same: if the migrant is considered stable enough, he or she is taken back across the border, regardless of nationality, age or having expressed a clear intent to apply for asylum in Poland.

As a consequence, beyond the lives potentially saved, the number of migrants detected and pushed back could actually be higher than before the setting up of the teams, Czarnota suggests.

Despite many appeals by human rights groups, the Tusk cabinet has yet to repeal the so-called border regulation of the Ministry of Interior and Administration, passed by PiS in 2021, that claims to legalise pushbacks in Poland, but which legal experts and the Polish Ombudsman argue is contrary to national and international law protecting the right to asylum, and thus illegal.

The new Polish government conducts humanitarian pushbacks, Czarnota drily noted, repeating a common wordplay used by Polish activists.

More:
Poland's New Government Continues Migrant Pushbacks on Belarus Border - Balkan Insight

Inside a Midtown church-turned-migrant help center, volunteer Alexia Sol has recently begun handing out a new form: a record of daily activities. The migrants are meant to use the form to track their efforts to leave the shelter system in hopes that the accounting will help them remain in it.

Always bring this paper with you, Sol recently told a group of men in Spanish at the Metro Baptist Church. She instructed them to meticulously log English classes, meetings with lawyers and any other proactive steps theyve taken to put the citys shelter system behind them. Record the date, time and place for everything you do, she said.

We cant be sure this will work, but its the best advice we can give right now, states a message on the log.

Starting this Wednesday, May 22, adult migrants can be evicted from city shelters after reaching a limit of 30 or 60 days -- depending on their age -- with limited opportunities to remain, under new shelter rules agreed upon in a court settlement in March. Under the agreement, migrants who have reached their stay limit will only be allowed to remain in shelter under extenuating circumstances, including making significant efforts to find their own place to stay hence the accounting suggested by Sol.

Migrants awaiting assistance at Metro Baptist Church in Midtown.

Arya Sundaram / Gothamist

There are approximately 250 migrants whose shelter stays will expire in the first five days of the new policy rollout, between May 22 and May 27, according to City Hall spokesperson Noah Levine. Many more will face the same challenge. From April 24 through early last week, city staffers at migrant shelters and intake centers alerted some 6,500 adult migrants that their shelter stays would be limited to 30 or 60 days, and theyd only be granted extensions under certain circumstances, City Hall spokesperson Kayla Mamelak said.

And starting May 27, all adult migrants who enter the shelter system will be subject to the new rules, Camille Joseph Varlack, Mayor Eric Adams' chief of staff, told reporters in a video briefing on Friday.

As of Friday morning, 29 migrants had applied for shelter extensions, Varlack said. She added that 14 were approved and 15 were denied.

Although city officials have yet to fully define what constitutes significant efforts to find new housing, migrants have been racing to document their efforts to get settled. At once, a network of attorneys and aid workers has mobilized to help prove their case, including by creating a paper trail.

The looming deadline marks a new era in the citys response to the migrant crisis, as the Adams administration increases pressure on the 65,000 migrants under the citys care to leave the shelter system and gain independence whether or not they are prepared to do so.

The administration has not indicated how many of those migrants it expects to leave the system. Josh Goldfein, a Legal Aid attorney involved in the settlement negotiations, said he will closely monitor the citys actions to see if they comply with the terms of the agreement.

When Sol instructed Venezuelan migrant Dorwar Perez, 24, to track his meetings, he nodded and replied mhm. He put the new form she provided into a bubble wrap bag he uses for storing important documents.

Dorwar and two of his fellow asylum-seeking friends said they planned to bring the new forms to their appointments the following day to get municipal IDs.

If he and his friends are denied shelter, Dorwar said in Spanish, I dont know whats going to happen with us. Where will we go?

Adams defends the shelter limits despite criticism from City Council leaders and the city comptroller, and has cited the need to reduce migrant costs by nudging migrants to leave the shelter system.

New York City's government has spent over $4.5 billion on the migrant crisis since July 2022. In unveiling his latest executive budget, Adams credited the shelter limits for helping to reduce migrant costs by $586 million through June 2025.

It's hard for me to understand how lots of people aren't going to end up on the street.

But a new report from the Independent Budget Office, the citys fiscal watchdog, says the administration hasn't considered the potential negative consequences of the shelter restrictions.

The budget office's report estimates the policy could cost the city over $2 billion per year, which includes health care for migrants who end up homeless, buses for public school students who move to new locations, and the impact to the local economy due to mail issues keeping migrants from accessing work permits.

Mamelak, from City Hall, said in a statement that the report seems to have a complete misunderstanding of the realities of this crisis, makes several inaccurate assumptions, and, in many cases, just simply misstates the facts.

She took issue with the budget office's assumption that a quarter of migrants who receive notices to leave shelter will become homeless, and the lack of consideration of migrants already working under-the table.

According to a shelter placement letter obtained by Gothamist, migrants are informed of the possibility to extend their stay if they meet one of a range of conditions, such as documentation of significant efforts to leave the shelter system or travel outside of the City of New York.

That could include applying for asylum, finding a job or taking English classes, among several other examples.

The more steps you take, the more likely you will be to demonstrate that you have made significant efforts, the letter said in Spanish.

You should document all the steps you take to leave temporary shelter, either presenting a document or taking photos with your phone that show the steps you have taken, the letter continued.

Nonetheless, immigrant and housing advocates say they worry about migrants being unfairly pushed out of the shelter system. Some point to the dearth of intensive case management services the city promised to help migrants exit the shelter system. A recent comptrollers office report cited the lack of such services for migrant families.

It's hard for me to understand how lots of people aren't going to end up on the street, said Deborah Berkman, an attorney at the New York Legal Assistance Group. It seems like a lot of the standards are very difficult to comply with.

In particular, she voiced concern about migrants working without formal authorization, which could jeopardize their chances of getting asylum, in order to keep their shelter spots.

Power Malu, who helps run the migrant help center at Metro Baptist Church, said he hopes the new logbooks his volunteers are giving migrants will help show the city the types of activities they should accept as significant efforts to leave the shelter system.

This happens all the time with the city, said Malu, director of the nonprofit Artists Athletes Activists helping local migrants. They implement these policies, and they don't even know they're talking about or how it's going to be rolled out.

Malu added: But the bottom line is that we can't wait to see. We have to just act.

While he worries about what's ahead, Perez said he doesnt want to stay in the shelter system indefinitely.

He said he wants to avoid the fate of some other migrants hes met who have stayed for months in shelter without finding a job, or filing their application to get asylum and work permits.

As long as we're processing our (legal) documents, we need nothing more than to look for a job and leave the shelter, Perez said.

View original post here:
Migrants and advocates brace for stricter rules in NYC shelters as evictions loom - Gothamist

A Column from the Desk of Assemblyman Karl Brabenec (R,C-Deerpark)

Many of you are tired of reading about the migrant crisis, and Im certainly tired of writing about it. Yet, the problem persists and demands our attention each week. This week, members of the Assembly and Senate held a press conference urging the state government to further investigate DocGo, Inc., the organization contracted by New York City to manage the migrant crisis. This organizations costs have burdened New York taxpayers, as reflected in our latest state budget. We still have many questions about DocGo and the expectations set by city and state officials. The contract this for-profit organization signed remains undisclosed. Attempts to access details are met with instructions to file Freedom of Information Law requests, which rarely yield the complete document. Adding to the concerns, DocGos former CEO was found to have lied about his experience and education, raising further alarms. The misuse of funds by DocGo, Inc. is a matter of grave concern. New York taxpayers have contributed a staggering $2.4 billion to cover the failings of this questionable organization. This is an unacceptable situation where taxes are being spent to fix problems created by the states own decisions. Its high time we consider alternative solutions: revoke sanctuary status, resume partnership with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or conduct better research when selecting companies to manage the migrant crisis. The next step must be a departure from the current approach to ensure better financial management and accountability.

Assemblyman Brabenec represents the 98th District, which includes the city of Port Jervis, the towns of Deerpark, Greenville, Mount Hope, Wawayanda, Minisink, Warwick, Tuxedo and portions of the towns of Goshen, Monroe and Ramapo. For more information, please visit his Official Website at http://www.yourfavoriteassemblyman.com.

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DEMANDING TRANSPARENCY FROM MIGRANT CRISIS CONTRACTORS The Warwick Valley Dispatch - wvdispatch.com