Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NYC Council aims to streamline migrants getting work, families entering shelter with series of bills
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Published Jun 11, 2024
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
City of New York
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Published Jun 11, 2024
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The City Council is taking up measures Tuesday designed to make it easier for migrants to enter the city’s workforce and streamline the shelter application process for homeless families with children.
The Council’s Committee on Immigration scheduled a joint hearing with the Committee on Small Business to discuss a bill that would change the application process for New York City IDs, which are widely accepted as valid proof of identification and are an important tool for migrants applying for jobs.
The bill would require the Department of Social Services to provide same-day, in-person application appointments at enrollment centers, and would create an appeals system for applicants who are denied a card. It would also mandate yearly training to educate IDNYC workers on the application process.
The committees also planned to discuss the Adams administration’s progress on awarding work permits to asylum seekers and migrants with federal Temporary Protected Status. According to City Comptroller Brad Lander's office, almost 40,000 jobs were open to migrants and asylum seekers across New York at the beginning of this year.
That hearing was set for 10 a.m. in the City Council Chamber.
Also on the agenda Tuesday is an oversight hearing of the Council’s Committee on General Welfare, where councilmembers planned to debate five bills related to the city’s shelter intake system for homeless families with children.
The bills — each focusing on a different aspect of the intake process — are meant to expand ease and access for families in need of shelter. One would require the Department of Homeless Services to open an intake center in Queens or Brooklyn, saving families the trek to the city’s only current intake center in the Bronx.
Some of the other bills would call for DHS to provide more services and staff at shelters and intake centers — requiring designated specialists to help each family navigate the intake process and apply for benefits. They would also encourage the DHS to look into partnerships with local organizations who could help with intakes, and would do away with the rule that children have to be present when their parents apply for shelter.
Almost 19,000 families with children are currently in DHS shelters across the city, according to the Institute for Children, Poverty and Homelessness. That’s a significant uptick from 2022, when the number hovered around 12,000.
Tagged
Politics
new york city
Asylum Seekers
social services
homeless children
economy
poverty
City Council
shelter
Brittany Kriegstein
Brittany Kriegstein covers all breaking news around New York City, with a focus on crime and gun violence. Got a tip? Email Brittany at [email protected].
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. ET
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
NYC nor’easter dries up after weather service reports minor flooding
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .