Ortt, Republicans in State Legislature seek special session about migrant crisis

Press Release, State Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt

Senate Republican Leader Rob Ortt, Assembly Republican Leader Will Barclay and Republican members of the Senate and Assembly today called for a special session of the Legislature in order to address the migrant crisis that continues to spiral out of control across the state.

In letters to Governor Hochul; the Senate and Assembly legislators urge her to convene an extraordinary session of the Legislature in order to take action to ensure funding for affected communities, revoke sanctuary status to stem the influx of migrants, ensure local control for communities, and take further actions to ensure taxpayers are protected.

“Since the beginning of this crisis, the Senate Republican Conference has been calling for action and solutions to ensure New Yorkers are protected in the midst of this unprecedented migrant crisis,” Ortt said. “As it continues to cause chaos and uncertainty in communities throughout the state, I am joining my colleagues in urging the Governor to call an extraordinary session of the Legislature so we can take action.”

“The migrant crisis has spiraled out of control and New York’s elected representatives must take immediate action,” said Assembly Republican Leader Will Barclay. “The lack of transparency, clarity and leadership have been glaring, which is why 82% of New Yorkers recognize this crisis as a serious problem. Assembly Republicans and our colleagues in the Senate have offered substantial proposals to establish guidelines and protect the people of New York. Letters to Joe Biden and meetings with White House staffers aren’t the solution. We need an immediate special session of the Legislature.”

“As we have said from the beginning, this crisis is not going away any time soon and it is our responsibility to ensure that the hardworking taxpayers of New York State, who we represent, are protected,” the Senators wrote in the letter.

“With the lack of appropriate action coming from Washington D.C. and little reason to believe immediate help is on the way, the duly elected representatives of New York have a responsibility to take matters into their own hands,” the Assembly Members wrote in the letter.