Stec Announces Legislation to Prohibit SUNY Dorms from Being Used to House Migrants

Senator Dan Stec (R,C-Queensbury) today joined several of his Senate Republican colleagues at a press conference addressing the migrant crisis in New York State. Stec announced he’s sponsoring new legislation, Senate bill S.7390, which would prohibit the use of SUNY dorms to house migrants. Additionally, Stec and his colleagues announced several other pieces of legislation addressing local and statewide concerns over Governor Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ plans to move migrants out of the city and into communities across the state. 

 “When Democrats rushed to declare New York a sanctuary city, they ignored the financial costs and consequences of their actions,” said Stec. “They did so despite several warnings from many, including from the members of this conference. 

“New York City received $1 billion in aid in the state budget to manage this self-inflicted crisis. Despite that, they still can’t handle this issue and now Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul are trying to pass costs and responsibilities onto upstate communities and SUNY campuses,” he continued. “They didn’t ask to become havens for migrants or to be inserted into the mayor and governor’s mismanagement of this issue. If New York City, home to millions and recipient of extra funding, can’t handle the influx of migrants, there’s no way SUNY campuses and upstate New York are equipped for it.  

“The infrastructure and financial resources to handle this issue simply aren’t there, especially just after the state pocketed hundreds of millions from counties in eFMAP funding in the budget that just passed three weeks ago,” Stec said. “Passing this crisis onto our taxpayers and our communities is unacceptable, which is why I’m sponsoring a bill to prohibit the use of SUNY dorms to house migrants and ensure campuses remain used for academic purposes.  

“Our taxpayers should not be responsible for the consequences of the governor and mayor’s political grandstanding. I’m proud to have joined my colleagues in calling for a better strategy to address this very real crisis,” he concluded. 

Video of Senator Stec’s remarks at the press conference can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-B1wxLP6hc