Concern rises in the Biden administration that New York is fumbling its migrant problem, U.S. officials say

There are growing concerns within the Biden administration that New York City is not doing enough to handle its migrant problem, according to several U.S. officials, after a federal team surveyed its migrant operations and found them lacking in key areas. The Department of Homeland Security sent an “assessment team” in August to study the way the city is handling the more than 100,000 migrants who have come through New York in the past year. The resulting assessment has not been released publicly, but one senior DHS official familiar with the team’s findings told NBC News the city has “no exit strategy” to see that migrants find their way out of its shelter system. “It’s not an operationally sound effort,” the official said. Another federal official said there are concerns that the migrant issue in New York City could overshadow accomplishments made by the Biden administration on immigration and other issues. New York City Mayor Eric Adams hosts rally for asylum seekers New York City Mayor Eric Adams calls for expedited work authorization for asylum-seekers Aug. 31.Selcuk Acar / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images New York Mayor Eric Adams agrees the city is having a hard time coping with the thousands of migrants sleeping on its streets and inside its shelters, with the number of monthly arrivals now at 10,000. “Never in my life have I had a problem that I did not see an ending to. I don’t see an ending to this,” he said Wednesday. “This issue will destroy New York City.” Responding to criticism from federal officials, a city spokeswoman said the federal government should be doing more. “As we have said repeatedly, with more than 110,000 asylum-seekers that have come through our care since spring 2022, and hundreds more arriving daily, we cannot continue to work to solve a national crisis that the federal government has refused to take meaningful action on,” said Kayla Mamelak, deputy press secretary in the mayor’s office. “We have opened more than 200 emergency shelters, have spent more than $2 billion to date, and expect to spend $5 billion this fiscal year alone without substantial aid from our state and federal partners. New York City has far passed its breaking point, and we continue to call on our federal partners to expedite work authorizations, declare a national state of emergency, create a decompression strategy, and lead on this national issue.” Just this week, the Biden administration and the city made some of their most significant strides toward collaboration. On Monday, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said on MSNBC, “We are working very closely with the city of New York. We sent a team to assess the situation and make significant recommendations, and now we’re executing on those recommendations in close partnership with the city.” On Tuesday, the White House announced that the National Park Service is finalizing the lease of portions of Floyd Bennett Field in southeast Brooklyn, which has airplane hangars and other buildings, to shelter migrants. The federal government will also move 50 employees to the city over the coming month to teach migrants to access services if they qualify, senior administration officials told reporters. And both federal and city officials say they are developing a case management system to better assess migrants who might qualify for work authorization or other benefits. Ad Both city and federal officials have said a large reason why so many recently arrived migrants in New York are homeless is that many do not know their rights and the city does not know who among them might qualify for asylum and work authorization. For more information, visit us at https://www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com/.