BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Asylum seekers who are living in a hotel in Western New York or anywhere upstate have been notified that they must leave by December 31, 2024.
There are at least three hotels in the Western New York region that are housing migrants. Erie County says any individuals or families in those hotels who have not received a permanent community placement by December 31 will be transported back to New York City.
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December 31 is the final day of New York City's contract with DocGo. DocGo is the company that New York City contracted to facilitate care to asylum seekers across the state.
7 News reached out to DocGo and received the following statement:
"Based on direction from the city, graduates of the program are either transitioned into other state or local supportive housing programs based on eligibility and capacity; reconnected with friends and family with the City of New York covering the cost of travel; or returned to the Arrival Center in New York City."
7 News also reached out to the New York City Mayor's office and received the following statement:
“We’ve come a long way since the first buses from Texas arrived in our city over two years ago, when we were working around the clock to care for the thousands of people who were arriving every week. Now, thanks to our resettlement efforts, intensive case management, and national-leading Asylum Application Help Center, more than 160,000 of our newest New Yorkers have left our shelter system and taken their next steps towards self-sufficiency. And thanks to our advocacy efforts on the federal level and executive orders issued by the Biden-Harris administration, we continue to see a decline in the number of people entering our shelter system every week. Our staff is on hand to help guests at our upstate shelters plan for next steps over these next three months, and those without an exit plan by December will be offered temporary placement in New York City."
