Dozens of immigrant and homeless advocates rallied against Mayor Eric Adams’ 60-day shelter limit for migrant families, as the first round of migrant families with children are being required to leave the city’s shelters.

Last year, Adams instituted a 60-day shelter limit policy for migrant families as a way to decrease the population of asylum seekers in the city’s care.

But now with the deadline set for Tuesday, local officials worry about evicting families during the cold winter months and in the middle of the school year.

What You Need To Know

  • Dozens of immigrant and homeless advocates rallied against Mayor Eric Adams 60-day shelter limit for migrant families

  • The city has given about 4,400 60-day notices to migrant families with children.

  • The policy was implemented last year as a means for the city to lower the number of migrants in the city's care.

  • The city has spent more than $1 billion on the migrant crisis and is set to decrease spending by 20% in 2024

“Schools are a sense of stability and that’s what New York City schools ask, and that’s what they do for our New York City kids,” Councilwoman Rita Joseph, who chairs the education committee on the council, said. “We know it’s a fiscal difficult time. We cannot make decisions at the expense of young people and the most vulnerable population.”

Some immigrant and homeless advocates insisted the policy is again a sign of the city’s mismanagement amid the ongoing influx.

“The 60-day rule is one thing and one thing only - harassment,” Christine Quinn, president and CEO of Win, one of the largest providers of shelter to homeless families in the city, said. “This rule is being put in place because the administration has failed to develop or implement a holistic plan to house and support the asylum seekers.”

The city says it has given out about 4,400 60-day notices to families with the first batch of notices expiring this week.

“Let me be very clear. Evicting families with school-aged children on any day of the year is inhumane and unjustified,” Councilwoman Shahana Hanif said.

Adams and his top officials on Monday defended their plan by saying the city is out of room, money and staff to open any more emergency shelters.

City officials said migrant families can re-apply for a new shelter spot at the Roosevelt Hotel in Midtown.

“We’re going to prioritize placing families with children, especially those who are in elementary school in Manhattan, preferably near a hotel where their children are currently in school,” Dr. Ted Long from NYC Health + Hospitals said.

City Hall insists the goal of the notices is to get migrant families to live independently and not make them homeless.  

“This is not going to be a city where we’re going to place children and families out on the street or sleep on the street. That is not going to happen,” Adams said at his weekly question-and-answer session on Monday.

City officials say they are treating migrant families fairly and appropriately.

“There is no evidence that we have ever done anything but treat families with the utmost care and the utmost sensitivity. I just want to be clear about that,” Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom said.