Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - There are still plenty of questions surrounding the migrant crisis that Western New York and the rest of the Empire State faces after Title 42 expired about two weeks ago.
Already in Western New York, a number of counties have declared a state of emergency, saying they are incapable of handle the influx of of migrants seeking asylum in the state. While the counties are not without compassion with this decision, it is simply a matter of not having the suitable resources to accommodate.
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Some of the uncertainties surrounding the migrant crisis has Republicans across New York calling for action, and asking for clarity with what plans are in place at the local, state and federal level to properly handle the matter.
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Congressman Nick Langworthy (NY-23)
While New York is thousands of miles away from the Southern border, Rep. Langworthy says the migrant crisis has reached Western New York's backyard and the state like never before.
"I've long said every state is a border state because of the impact of the border crisis, but state lines, at this point, are meaningless because of the mobile nature of what's going on," said Langworthy during a press conference at the Buffalo-Niagara International Airport.
Langworthy feels the expiration of Title 42, combined with the state's sanctuary city and state policies, has made New York a magnet for illegal immigration. In past conversations with Gov. Kathy Hochul, Langoworthy says she estimates around 70,000 migrants have come to New York State, with many of them currently housed in hotels across New York City.
With this being a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions, according to Langworthy, he agrees with many Upstate communities in New York with the fact of not having the resources to handle any kind of influx of migrants.
"They do not have the infrastructure to deal with huge influxes of migrants who need shelter, food, medical care and education. Our Upstate communities are already struggling to survive, and they simply don't have the capacity to fund, house, feed and school thousands of migrants," Langworthy said. "Many of the migrants, we don't have a record of their vaccinations. Meanwhile, we were firing nurses that were so desperately needed because they refused to get a vaccination. Issues like polio, measles, hepatitis, those vaccinations are all in question on this population. This could lead to further public health outbreak in our hospitals that, I talk to each and every week, are at bankruptcy levels, in some cases. This has gotten so out of hand, it has now become a bipartisan issue, where County Executives on both sides of the aisle are issuing executive orders. This is no way to run our country."
For Langworthy, he believes the country needs to restore law and order at the Southern border, and support border patrol agents who are being pushed to the brink every day. That solution may come with the H.R.2 (Secure the Borders Act of 2023), a comprehensive border package targeting issues such as immigration and border security by imposing limits to asylum eligibility.
"This is a solution to stopping the free for all that is hurting our country, and frankly, not any good for the migrants who get here and have nowhere to go and no way to support themselves," Langworthy said. "What we have now is chaos. What we need is control, and law and order. It shouldn't be a Republican or a Democratic issue, because it affects everyone. If they haven't woken up yet to see how broken this current system is, then people just aren't paying attention."
While the bill has been passed by the House of Representatives, Langworthy says not enough action is being taken at the Senate level, and President Biden is threatening vetoes. He also claims this is a comprehensive decision by the Biden administration to make the border this porous.
Langworthy goes on to say every state with a major city in the country is dealing with the migrant crisis right now. He also believes it has started, or will start to trickle to surrounding regions and other areas of the state. That is why he is in full support of leaders at the county level declaring states of emergency in an attempt to tackle the crisis head-on.
"I think you have to prepare for emergency," Langworthy said. "If our small rural schools get called in August and say, 'Hey, make room for 40 new migrant families to move in,' that is going to be an emergency for that school district. It's going to be an emergency for the Social Services Department of our smaller rural counties that can't handle this. Erie County's a big county. The County Executive [Mark Poloncarz], obviously he's made his decisions, and I believe there's local control, our local government's going to figure out what the policies are for the localities. But I definitely respect and support the counties that I represent that almost all have passed a state of emergency, because they need to have local ability to make swift in clear decisions."
One solution Langworthy believes would speed up the asylum process more immigration judges to approve or deny applications from migrants.
"There's a 150-day waiting period for those that apply for asylum. Now here's the deal: They might apply for asylum, they might not be entitled to asylum, but we won't find out until the year '27 or '28 when they actually get a hearing in front of an immigration judge," he said. "Now that begs the question, we need more immigration judges, that I would be all for."
Republican candidate for Erie County Executive, Chrissy Casilio
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz announced over social media on Saturday he will not be joining some of his surrounding counties in declaring a state of emergency that would block housing for migrants seeking asylum in the region.
"As County Executive, I will not be issuing a state of emergency regarding the possibility that legal asylum seekers may be housed in our county," stated Poloncarz in his tweet Saturday. "Furthermore, I will not be issuing an emergency order prohibiting the housing of legal asylum seekers in our community. Not only is such an order illegal under Title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it is also morally repugnant."
Then on Sunday, Erie County Legislator Jim Malczewski called upon Poloncarz to declare a state of emergency to avoid a potential immigration crisis in the county. He will be introducing a resolution in the Erie County Legislature this week opposing the efforts of Gov. Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams to relocate migrants and asylum seekers to other parts of the state, which may include Erie County.
While no influx of asylum seekers has yet been noted in Erie County or Western New York, Malczewski says the call for an emergency is proactive in nature, and points to problems elsewhere where proactive steps were not taken.
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Chrissy Casilio, who will be running against Poloncarz this fall for Erie County Executive, is demanding answers regarding the mounting situation with the migrant crisis, and urging Poloncarz to provide clarity on his plans going forward.
"There has been no federal plan to quell the influx of migrants and asylum seekers, and the onus has been placed on local communities to handle this crisis," said Casilio during a press conference on Monday in front of the Rath Building in Downtown Buffalo. "With over 4,000 migrants seeking shelter in New York City last week, Gov. Hochul has been in the process of identifying available properties, including SUNY campuses for temporary or potentially longer-term housing options. Details of this proposal has been sparse, and many Western New York counties have already declared a state of emergency.
"In his statement on Saturday, not only did Mark Poloncarz refuse to follow suit, but he also berated and belittled any resident that sought details regarding his plans. Mark's approach to this crisis is the same as it is to every crisis he has faced. He has no strategy. He has shown no leadership, he takes no action, and he bullies and belittles anyone who asks him to be accountable. We deserve better. It further exemplifies that Mr. Poloncarz has lost touch with hardworking families that are struggling to deal with rising costs of groceries, child care and housing."
As a mom and a business owner, Casilio feels there is a genuine unease and palpable tension among Erie County residents and families today, with the potential migrant crisis being on the table.
"Given the chaotic and mismanaged situation at the border, the lack of information about the people entering our country and communities is concerning," she said. "Mark also said that words matter. I couldn't agree more. His words dismissing the concerns of residents showcases his lack of leadership. It is not unreasonable to expect a clear plan of action from our County Executive. How are these people being vetted and checked? Would this include health and background checks? How much will this cost Erie County taxpayers? What Erie County resources are being allocated towards this? Our elected officials work for us. We deserve answers on the government's vetting process, logistics and shelter, and the cost and impact it will have on our region. Transparency is not too much to ask for."
Casilio says it's hard to come up with a solution for the migrant crisis facing Erie County if no one knows, in full, the situation. She feels with the lack of transparency and the unknowns of what's in the works to handle a potential immigration crisis at the county level, Poloncarz should declare a state of emergency.
"At the very least, it would provide funding, but even beyond that, we need to know what the plan is. We need to know the information at hand, and how this will affect our community," Casilio said.
She also calls on Poloncarz to take the priorities of Erie County residents and families first as County Executive. If Casilio was in his seat as County Executive, she says she would prioritize the well-being of Erie County residents and be as transparent as possbile, as far as who's coming to the region.
"I would make sure there's a program in place for vetting, and I would be transparent about if and how we can afford this, and that's not happening right now," Casilio said.
State Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt
Along with members of the Senate Republican Conference on Monday, Ortt requested a full, transparent accounting of taxpayer dollars being spent on the ongoing migrant crisis, and introduced several pieces of legislation in response to the crisis.
Ortt says it is the Democratic policies of open borders and sanctuary cities that are the two driving forces behind this crisis, where illegal migrants are being shipped, bused and transported to New York State.
"We're talking about whether to house them in school gymnasiums, jail, large parking lots, or any number of college campuses. The truth is, we don't know. We don't know," said Ortt during a press conference Monday in Albany. "There's really no plan about how we're going to deal with it today, and how we're going to deal with it in the future, especially with the expiration of Title 42. Unfortunately, despite her visit to D.C., the Governor still has not asked [it] to be reinstated. I don't think she's even said Title 42, which is very disappointing to me."
In a letter to State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, members of the Senate Republican Conference requested a full accounting of taxpayer dollars being used by the state to respond to the migrant crisis. In an effort to keep the public informed, they requested every dollar spent be updated and made public by the Comptroller’s office, similar to the way COVID-19 funding was tracked throughout the pandemic on the agency’s website.
"When I talk to my local county officials, none of them believe they will not be on the hook for some of these costs. It's almost impossible to actually believe there will not be, at least, ancillary costs they will then be responsible for," Ortt said. "But also, we just put a billion dollars in the state budget, where's that going? How is it being used? What vendors are getting paid, whether it's a hotel, a bus company, or anyone else for that matter, that might be involved? There should be a full accounting and a trail of these public dollars that New Yorkers are financing as a result of Democrats policies."
Republican Senators also announced several new pieces of legislation that will be introduced to address the crisis, including bills that would:
- Prohibit the housing of migrants on SUNY campuses (Dan Stec)
- Prohibit the housing of migrants in K-12 schools in New York City (Andrew Lanza)
- Prohibit the housing of migrants in K-12 schools throughout the state (Alexis Weik)
- Institute the New Yorkers Combating Alien Recidivism and Ending Sanctuary (NY CARES) Act, prohibits local governments and entities thereof, including sheriffs departments, municipal police departments and district attorney's offices, from adopting laws or policies which impede or interfere with the enforcement of federal immigration laws. (Dean Murray)
Ortt also agrees with many counties across Western New York that have declared a state of emergency regarding the migrant crisis. He says the decisions were quite clear in the matter with many local governments simply not having the resources to properly handle any sort of influx of migrants seeking asylum.
"What we've seen across the state in the last several days is county after county, including counties governed by Democrat County Executives and, in most situations, Democrat County Legislators, voting for states of emergency, saying, 'We don't have the resources, the space, the money, nor do we think it's the right philosophy' to bring in these illegal migrants into their counties," Ortt said. "This really isn't a Republican/Democrat issue, because across the state, many Democrats have said, 'We can't do it. Cannot do it.'"
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