Erie County, NY—Today, the Language Access Working Group and Erie County Legislators gathered at the Legislature to celebrate the introduction of the Erie County Language Access Act in the Erie County Legislature. This bill would require all Erie County departments and agencies to adopt a language access plan which shall include language services in the top six languages spoken in Erie County, a community advisory council to give community groups representation and power over the planning and implementation, live interpretation, a specific timeline for the translation of vital documents, and more.

New York, NY—Today, Judge Emmet Sullivan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia blocked the implementation of Title 42, which has expelled migrants along the Southern border on the pretextual basis of public health concerns. The New York Immigration Coalition applauds this decision to protect the rights of asylum seekers, while demanding expanded protections for people seeking freedom in the United States.

Long Island, NY–Today, the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) and the Long Island Language Advocates Coalition (LILAC) sent a letter signed by elected officials on Long Island to the Nassau County Executive, Bruce Blakeman, demanding compliance of the existing language access policy by the Nassau County Police Department (NCPD). This comes after the NYIC and LILAC released a report in September detailing the systemic neglect of people living in Nassau County who have limited English proficiency.

New York, NY—Yesterday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced a package of housing reforms intended to help unhoused individuals and families secure permanent housing. Included in these reforms are a range of changes to the City Family Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (CityFHEPS) housing voucher program intended to make the program easier and faster to access.

New York, NY—Today, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced that the tent complex for asylum seekers at Randalls Island, referred to as the Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center (HERRC), will be closing next week. The tent complex, which had the capacity for 1,000 people, was sparsely utilized since opening last month after its initial location at Orchard Beach was nixed.

New York, NY—Today, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Schools Chancellor David C. Banks announced that the Department of Education (DOE) would allocate approximately $200 million of FY24 federal stimulus money for school budgets this year to ensure individual NYC school budgets would be held harmless for declining enrollment.

New York, NY–Today, the New York Immigration Coalition, Comptroller Brad Lander, City Council Committee on Education Chair Rita Joseph, allies and immigrant New Yorkers rallied at the Tweed Courthouse steps to call for transparency, full funding for, and proper placement of newcomer asylum seeker students in New York City schools.

New York, NY—Today, news broke that settlement talks for Ramos v. Nielsen have collapsed, leaving more than 250,000 people who currently have Temporary Protected Status (TPS) at risk of deportation. The New York Immigration Coalition decries this breakdown of negotiations, and demands that President Biden restore TPS for El Salvador, Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua, while also providing a pathway to citizenship.

New York, NY–Today, the Randall’s Island “Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center” opened to house new asylum seekers arriving in New York City. The New York Immigration Coalition strongly denounces the decision to house asylum seekers in tent encampments in this mass transit desert, and demands Mayor Adams utilize alternative housing options to meaningfully protect new arrivals.

New York, NY—Today, U.S. Judge Andrew Hanen of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas issued an injunction preventing the Biden administration’s recent DACA regulation from taking effect. This is not a final ruling, and while DACA still stands for existing recipients and renewals are allowed, no new or lapsed applications will be processed.