Suffolk County and the Town of Riverhead are among a group of New York municipalities being sued by New York City. The lawsuit claims efforts to block migrants from the city are unlawfully discriminatory.
An executive order from Riverhead Supervisor Yvette Aguiar in May, prohibits hotels, motels and other facilities from accepting migrants. County Executive Steve Bellone enacted a similar order, with some exceptions.
The lawsuit asks a Manhattan State Supreme Court Judge to declare emergency orders from 31 municipalities void.
It says at least 30 of the state’s 62 counties have issued such orders, and at least six jurisdictions have sued to block relocations.
New York City is struggling to find shelter for thousands of asylum seekers, many of whom crossed the U.S.-Mexico border. They were bused into the city through a program from governors of border-states.
County leaders say they're concerned about the cost of caring for migrants, even though the city said it would help out.
A decades-old mandate requires the city to provide shelter to anyone in need, but until recently that has only been applied to the country's homeless.
