A bipartisan group of New York City council members is sounding the alarm over the push to fast-track work visas for the thousands of migrants in the Big Apple — saying it will set a troubling precedent.
“Allowing migrants to ‘cut the line’ will further incentivize more to come and exacerbate this already unmanageable crisis,” the council’s Common Sense Caucus warned.
“Like the millions who came here before them, the migrants who have recently arrived in New York City should follow the lawful immigration process before receiving work authorization or other benefits.
“While we recognize the pressing issue of labor shortages, we emphasize that upholding established immigration procedures is essential to preserve the principles of fairness and respect for those who have chosen the legal path to call America their home.”
The Sunday statement from the group of local pols — made up of five Republicans and two Democrats, including Republican Minority Leader Joseph Borelli of Staten Island and Queens Democrat Robert Holden — comes as Gov. Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams turn up the heat on the feds to expedite work visas for asylum seekers.
Adams railed against the federal government again last week, calling on leaders to push through work authorizations for the nearly 60,000 migrants in the city’s care.
“It’s just common sense,” Adams said at the Lower Manhattan rally on Thursday.
More than 107,000 asylum seekers have come to New York City since spring 2022, according to statistics from City Hall last week. The thousands of migrants arriving each week has severely strained city services and is expected to cost the Big Apple $12 billion by 2025.
The Adams administration has repeatedly said an asylum seeker’s ability to legally provide for themselves and their family is the shortest path through the crisis.
Hochul has echoed the city’s push for the federal sign-off for migrants to work.
The issue was also the main topic during the governor’s nearly three-hour closed-door meeting with White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients last week during her trip to Washington, DC.
That meeting, though, led to few concessions from the Biden administration, which said the decision to change the process for work authorizations rests in the hands of Congress.
Last year, the Common Sense Caucus fired off another letter to the feds warning of the impending migrant crisis and the toll it would take on the city.