Judge rejects lawsuit against charter bus companies that brought migrants to NY from TX

New York City Eric Adams suffered a setback last week in a lawsuit he initiated at the beginning of the year against charter bus companies hired by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to bring migrants north from Texas.

Justice Mary Rosado declared that Adams' attempt to use an 1817 law to halt the transport of migrants to the Big Apple was invalid in that the statute itself was unconstitutional, as the Associated Press reports, rendering a decision of which President-elect Donald Trump would likely approve.

Adams' lawsuit thwarted

Back in January, Adams filed suit against a group of charter bus companies that had entered into contracts with Abbott for the purpose of driving migrants northward to New York City, a self-declared sanctuary jurisdiction.

In support of his case, Adams attempted to utilize an “anti-pauper” law from the early 1800s to stop the practice spearheaded by Abbott beginning in 2022, contending that it made criminal the act of bringing indigents into the state “for the purpose of making him a public charge.”

Rosado, however, was having none of it, and she declared the law cited by Adams to be unconstitutional in and of itself.

According to the judge, states do not have the power to regulate interstate travel of individuals based on their financial status, and she also held that the law at issue attempts to undermine a “fundamental right – the right ot travel.”

The judge went on to state that any practice forcing bus operators to conduct screenings of potential passengers based on their potential need for public aid is an infringement of their rights and that there is no justification for penalizing bus operators for not taking steps to prevent poor people from coming to New York.

A better approach for Adams to take, the judge opined, would be to seek help from Congress to stem the tide of arrivals, rather than asking her to apply “an antiquated, unconstitutional statute to infringe on and individual's right to enter New York based on economic status.”

Mayor under pressure

Adams' lawsuit was part of a broader strategy on his part to deal with what has become a costly and unmanageable influx of migrants.

Last week, the mayor announced an end to a program in which his administration provided prepaid debit cards to migrants staying in tax-funded shelter facilities, disbursements they were to use for the purchase of food, as the New York Post reported.

Initiated in March, the program ultimately distributed roughly $2.4 million to approximately 2,600 migrant families, but according to Adams, the program will not be renewed upon its scheduled January expiration date.

The company that administered the program was granted a controversial no-bid contract to provide an average of $350 per week for a family of four, a scenario that sparked backlash from many in the city.

Though Adams defended the contract by saying that it was initiated amid crisis conditions so as to avoid delay in providing critical assistance, comptroller Brad Lander has since scuttled city hall's ability to freely contract for migrant services of this nature, underscoring the contentious climate surrounding the situation.