Hundreds of immigrants heading to New York were dumped in New Jersey over the New Year’s weekend, in an apparent attempt to circumvent a municipal order from the Big Apple aimed at limiting the number of immigrants arriving from the border to the city.
Since last Saturday (30), 13 buses from Texas, carrying about 450 immigrants, have arrived in New Jersey. Accompanying staff helped the immigrants transfer to trains and buses heading to New York City.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams signed an emergency executive order last week requiring charter bus companies to notify 32 hours in advance about the arrival of immigrants and restricting the days and times when buses can arrive. According to the order, buses can only arrive Monday through Friday, from 8:30 AM to 12 PM, and drivers must have reports detailing which passengers they are transporting, whether they arrived in the country in the last 90 days, how many need emergency shelter, and whether the passengers are traveling as single adults or as part of a family.
The mayor justified the new order by stating it would bring more structure to the immigrant arrival process. Adams has previously stated that “the city was being destroyed by the migration crisis.” Since spring 2022, New York has processed over 161,500 asylum seekers, 68,000 of whom are sheltered and under the city’s care. New York City is mandated by court order to provide shelter to anyone who requests it.
Companies that violate the executive order will face misdemeanor charges, which can result in three months of jail time and a $500 fine for individuals and $2,000 for companies. The Police Department may also seize the buses.
New York and other cities governed by Democrats, such as Chicago, have been receiving a flood of buses coming particularly from Texas. Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, has been funding the transportation of immigrants, stating that these cities should “share the burden” of the crisis at the southern border of the United States.
Source: The New York Times