Migrant influx strains ‘right-to-shelter’ system in Massachusetts, NYC

Massachusetts’ emergency family shelter system will reach its capacity by the end of the month, Gov. Maura Healey warned Monday, saying the system has been expanding at an unsustainable rate to handle the demand from newly arriving migrant families.

Also on Monday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced that he is limiting shelter stays for migrant families with children to 60 days.

Both seek to ease pressure on housing systems that have been overwhelmed by a large influx of asylum seekers over the past year.

Mr. Adams’ office said it will begin sending 60-day notices to migrant families who live in New York shelters, though they could reapply for housing if they are unable to find a new place to live. The city also will provide “intensified casework services” to help families secure housing, according to a news release.

Massachusetts, meanwhile, will begin assessing families seeking shelter after Nov. 1; those with the highest needs, including health and safety risks, will be prioritized. Families that can’t immediately be placed in shelter will be put on a waiting list.

As a “right-to-shelter” state, Massachusetts is legally required to provide shelter to eligible families through its emergency assistance program. Ms. Healey said the state is not abandoning the law, but noted that the state is on track to hit its capacity of 7,500 families – or about 24,000 people – by the end of October.

“The reality we are facing now is this. We do not have enough space, service providers, or funds to safely expand beyond 7,500 families,” Ms. Healey told reporters. “From that point on we will no longer be able to guarantee shelter placement for new families entering the system.”

In Massachusetts, families are currently spread out across hundreds of locations in 90 cities and towns in a range of facilities, from traditional shelters to hotels and motels to temporary sites like college dorms. About half of those in emergency shelter are children.

Mr. Adams is seeking to suspend New York City’s own “right-to-shelter” law, unique among major United States cities. In New York City alone, more than 60,000 migrants currently live in city shelters, many without the legal ability to work, according to his office.

“With over 64,100 asylum seekers still in the city’s care, and thousands more migrants arriving every week, expanding this policy to all asylum seekers in our care is the only way to help migrants take the next steps on their journeys,” Mr. Adams said in a statement.

Ms. Healey’s counterpart, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, said last week she supported New York City’s effort to suspend its “right-to-shelter” law.

Mr. Adams has estimated the city will spend $12 billion over the next three years to handle the influx, setting up large-scale emergency shelters, renting out hotels, and providing various government services for migrants.

Ms. Healey said that Massachusetts is working to help families already in shelter exit the system to help open up more space, calling on the federal government for expedited work authorizations to allow new arrivals to more quickly find jobs and start earning a living. She said many are ready and able to work, and the state has plenty of job openings.

“We need urgent support from the federal government which bears ultimate responsibility for this situation,” she said. “This is a federal problem that demands a federal solution.”

Immigrant rights activists said they welcomed steps the Healey administration has taken but said that state and federal lawmakers need to do more.

“It’s now time for the state to approve more funding for shelters and for Congress to get its act together and pass immigration reform that allows immigrants to work,” said Elizabeth Sweet, Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition executive director.

In August, Ms. Healey announced that she was activating up to 250 members of the Massachusetts National Guard to assist at shelters and hotels as the state struggles with an influx of migrants.

The move came after the governor declared a state of emergency because of the strain on the shelter system.

This story was reported by The Associated Press.