(NewsNation) — Most adult migrants in New York City will only be allowed to stay in shelters for 30 days under a settlement agreement announced on Friday.
The new rule — which scales back the city’s legal obligation to provide shelter — comes after months of negotiations between the city and homeless advocates who eventually agreed on a change that will give Mayor Eric Adams more flexibility to address the surge of new arrivals.
The settlement comes with a few exceptions. Migrant families with children won’t be impacted and can still stay in shelters for up to 60 days with the option to reapply. Younger migrant adults between the ages of 18 and 23 will also be provided 60 days, the city said.
Other adult migrants will be allowed to stay beyond 30 days if they have an “extenuating circumstance” or medical disability.
The temporary agreement is a win for the mayor, whose administration has struggled to house the thousands of migrants flooding the city’s shelter system. Throughout the crisis, the city has struggled to comply with a decades-old “Right to Shelter” requirement which guarantees a bed to any homeless person seeking one.
“We have been clear, from day one, that the ‘Right to Shelter’ was never intended to apply to a population larger than most U.S. cities descending on the five boroughs in less than two years,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.
Since the spring of 2022, the city has provided shelter to approximately 183,000 new arrivals, Adams said. Today, there are approximately 65,000 migrants in the city’s care.
“This new agreement reflects the reality we’re currently in and allows New York City to appropriately manage this crisis,” City Hall Chief Counsel Lisa Zornberg said in a statement.
Since the beginning of the 2023 fiscal year, New York City has spent nearly $1.5 billion providing shelter, food and other services to asylum seekers. The city is projected to spend more than $12 billion through Fiscal Year 2025.
Adams has repeatedly called on the Biden administration for additional funding but so far the feds have only sent $49 million to help, the New York Post reported last week.
