Members of the City Council were in Albany Wednesday to meet with their colleagues in the legislature about the influx of migrants to the city. With just two weeks left before the end of the legislative session, time is running out.

While Mayor Eric Adams and Gov. Kathy Hochul are looking to speak in one voice when it comes to migrants coming to the city, City Council members are also looking to participate in that debate.

A handful of council members took the trip to Albany this week to meet with their colleagues in the legislature. The message: more help is needed.

What You Need To Know

  • A handful of City Council members traveled to Albany to meet with legislators about migrants

  • Although they have no specific legislation they would like to see passed, council members wanted to brainstorm on ideas

  • The members met with legislators, representatives from the governor’s office and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie

“That help starts with collaborating with our state colleagues,” says Democratic City Council member Nantasha Williams of Queens. “We had some really good conversations last night with over 30 to 40 state senators and state assemblymembers about things we can all be doing, about things that they can be doing before the session ends.”

There are no specific bills the council members are asking for at this time.

“As legislators, we wanted to make sure that we are all on the same page,” says Democratic Council member Althea Stevens of the Bronx. “Because this is really a unified effort to make sure that we are able to address the needs of our new New Yorkers, because that’s the reality of what is happening right now.”

Councilmembers also want to see action from the state on the critical issue of housing. The issue was taken off the table during budget negotiations, and there does not seem to be much of an appetite to reignite it.

“My State Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal has legislation, Assemblymember Linda Rosenthal has legislation, so we are also up here to support some of the bills on the floor,” says Council member Erik Bottcher, a Democrat from Manhattan. “We are also up here hoping for action on housing.”

At this point, the focus in Albany seems to be on local bills and priorities for members.

Hope for big-ticket items seems to be fleeting. But it is not too late to do anything, with two weeks left to go before they adjourn.