'We welcome immigrants,' Cornell Professor says influx of migrants could improve economy
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Onondaga County officials announced Monday evening that the county is suing New York City, Mayor Eric Adams, the NYC Commissioner of Social Services, and Candlewood Suites over the potential transport of asylum seekers from New York City upstate.
MORE: Onondaga County sues NYC over possible transport of migrants upstate
The county also filed a temporary restraining order to prevent the immediate transport of migrants into Onondaga County.
Onondaga County isn't the only upstate NY county that has put out an emergency order — all Central New York counties have issued emergency orders aimed at stopping an influx of migrants upstate.
Onondaga, Oneida, and Oswego County leaders said the reasoning for their concern, and the emergency order that followed was due to a lack of capacity, funding and other resources that would be needed to bring more migrants into the area.
Despite this, Stephen Yale-Loehr, a professor of Immigration Law Practice at Cornell Law School, believes counties should be encouraging the influx of migrants instead of pushing them away.
"I would say we welcome immigrants, we want them to come properly, we want them to come legally," said Yale-Loehr. "I would co-sign Governor Hochul’s letter to the Federal Immigration Agency urging them to decide these work permit applications, and I would also urge New York State to appropriate more money to help counties on immigration generally.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul pushed for additional federal resources to deal with the current migrant crisis in New York City, including calling for expedited work visas so those seeking asylum in the United States can legally work more quickly.
"More than anything, we need changes to the work authorization policies, and let these individuals not have to wait months, or possibly years to get that status," said Gov. Hochul at a press conference Monday. "Let’s get it in an expedited basis."
Yale-Loehr agreed with the sentiment, pointing to the job shortage in New York State, “I think the people need to think about the fact that these migrants are actually going to help the economies of Upstate New York or wherever else," said Yale-Loehr. "We have a job shortage in New York State, and there are many jobs these migrants can do ... we should be welcoming them with open arms.”
