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Border security

NYC Mayor Adams sues Texas bus companies for

transporting migrants to sanctuary city, seeks $700
million
New York City has feuded with Texas over the busing of migrants to the city
By Adam Shaw Fox News

Published January 4, 2024 2:51pm EST

Gov. Greg Abbott responds to Mayorkas blaming him for border crisis
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott speaks out on Hannity after House begins impeachment proceedings against Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Thursday announced a lawsuit against more than a
dozen charter bus and transportation companies involved in busing migrants to New York
City, seeking hundreds of millions of dollars for the care of migrants in the self-described
"sanctuary" city.

"New York City has and will always do our part to manage this humanitarian crisis, but we
cannot bear the costs of reckless political ploys from the state of Texas alone," Adams
said in a statement . "Today, we are taking legal action against 17 companies that have
taken part in Texas Governor Abbott’s scheme to transport tens of thousands of migrants
to New York City in an attempt to overwhelm our social services system."

The lawsuit argues that the companies have violated New York state law by not paying for
the cost of caring for migrants, and seeks $708 million in damages that it has already
spent to care for them. It cites New York law that requires anyone who brings a "needy
person" from out of state for the purposes of making them a public charge to either take
them out of the state or support them.

ADAMS SLAPS RESTRICTIONS ON MIGRANT BUSES COMING TO NYC FROM TEXAS AS

NUMBERS RISE

"Governor Abbott’s continued use of migrants as political pawns is not only chaotic and
inhumane but makes clear he puts politics over people. Today’s lawsuit should serve as a
warning to all those who break the law in this way," Adams said.

Adams, who has been locked in a war of words with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott over Abbott’s
transportation of migrants to "sanctuary cities" since last year, recently announced an
executive order requiring charter buses transporting migrants to provide 32 hours' notice
in advance of their arrival in New York City.

The order also requires buses to arrive between 8:30 a.m. and 12 p.m. between Monday
and Friday and drop off at one particular spot.

People, mainly from West African countries, line up outside the former St. Brigid School to apply for shelter, in New York
City on December 7, 2023. There are approximately 66,000 asylum seekers currently housed in shelters in New York, which
Mayor Eric Adams says is "managing a national migration crisis virtually single-handedly." (Photo by Charly TRIBALLEAU /
AFP) (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images) (Getty Images)

But buses have appeared to be dodging that requirement by dropping off migrants at train
stations in neighboring New Jersey from where they can travel on a train directly into
,

NYC. Secaucus Mayor Michael Gonnelli on Sunday accused the migrant buses of
bypassing New York City's executive order through a "loophole."

TEXAS MIGRANT FLIGHT HEADING TO NEW YORK CITY DIVERTED TO PHILADELPHIA

Adams was asked about the change in strategy on Thursday, and said that the city will
continue to enforce the executive order and that he had spoken to the governors of New
Jersey and Connecticut.

"And we're going to continue to reach out to our colleagues in the region to say that
everyone should put in place a similar EO to send a loud message that these bus
operators and bus companies should not be participating in Governor Abbott's…fiasco of
really trying to destabilize these cities," he said.

He went on to take another shot on Abbott over the buses.

"What he is doing is just being dogmatic about destabilizing these cities. And we must
meet his challenge," he said.

Adams also received support for the lawsuit from New York Gov. Kathy Hochul who said
companies have responsibility "for their role in this ongoing crisis."

"Ifthey are getting paid to break the law by transporting people in need of public
assistance into our state, they should be on the hook for the cost of sheltering those
individuals — not just passing that expense along to hard-working New Yorkers. I’m proud
to support the mayor’s lawsuit," she said.

Abbott, meanwhile, has brushed off the criticism he has seen from Adams and other
Democratic mayors and said he is busing the migrants to help besieged Texas
communities. The state says it has transported over 95,000 migrants to "sanctuary" cities
which Abbott recently noted is "only a FRACTION of what overwhelmed Texas border
towns face daily." There were more than 2.4 million migrant encounters in FY 23, and
officials have told lawmakers last month that they are releasing an average of 5,000 a day
into the U.S.
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sues Texas bus
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migrants to
sanctuary city, seeks
$700 million
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He can be reached at adam.shaw2@fox.com or on Twitter .
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