Wednesday, January 28, 2026, 11:30 a.m. (New York City time), 250 Broadway - 8th Floor - Hearing Room 2
Committee: Committee on Immigration
0:23 Good morning good morning
0:23 welcome to the New York City
0:25 council vote on the committee
0:27 on immigration at this time
0:29 please sounds electronics and
0:30 do not approach the dais chair d
0:40 morning everyone as you can
0:41 see it's my first
0:44 . Hearing good morning
0:44 everyone I am councilmember
0:47 Elsie Encarnación chair chair
0:49 of the on immigration I want
0:51 to first thank speaker Julie
0:52 Menin for entrusting me with
0:54 chairing this crucial
0:56 committee and to my colleagues
0:58 for serving on the committee
0:59 alongside me and joining us
1:01 here today I would also like
1:01 to take a moment to thank a
1:04 member of il ez for her
1:05 leadership you have modeled
1:07 what integrity looks like in
1:10 leadership what compassion and
1:11 passion looks like in
1:13 leadership and I'm glad to b
1:14 estill sharing this committee
1:16 with you
1:16 . Today the committee is
1:19 considering whether to
1:20 recommend that intro number 1
1:23 42 12 a 25 be re passed
1:26 notwithstanding the objections
1:27 of former Mayor Eric adams and
1:29 whether to recommend that the
1:30 former mayor's veto message m
1:33 00 17 of 20 26 be filed intro
1:37 number 14 12 a sponsored by
1:39 Council Member Tiffany cab on
1:41 would redefine terms
1:44 concerning immigration
1:44 enforcement to account for
1:47 current enforcement practices
1:48 and prohibit the maintenance
1:50 of officers office or quarters
1:52 on property under the
1:53 jurisdiction of the department
1:55 of corrections by federal
1:57 immigration authorities in 2
2:00 014 the council passed local
2:01 law 58 which prohibits u s
2:03 immigration and custom
2:06 enforcement ice from
2:07 maintaining an office on
2:08 rikers island to enforce civil
2:11 immigration law local law 5
2:13 8however provides the Mayor
2:14 made by executive order
2:16 authorized federal immigration
2:18 authorities to maintain an
2:20 office or quarters on property
2:21 under the jurisdiction of for
2:24 purposes unrelated to the
2:25 enforcement of civil
2:26 immigration laws
2:27 . On April 8 2025 then first
2:30 deputy Mayor randy mastro
2:32 signed an executive order t
2:34 oallow ice to maintain an
2:36 office on rikers island this
2:38 executive order came on the
2:40 heels of a February 202
2:43 5meeting between former Mayor
2:44 adams and trump
2:46 administration's border czar
2:47 tom homan following that
2:49 meeting adam promised to
2:51 implement the executive order
2:52 that would enable ice agents
2:54 to operate on rikers island
2:55 after the council filed a
2:57 lawsuit a New York state
2:59 supreme court judge
3:00 invalidated the executive
3:02 order due to the impermissible
3:03 appearance of a conflict of
3:06 interests intro number 14 12 a
3:08 wood bar federal immigration
3:11 authorities from maintaining
3:13 offices or quarters for any
3:15 purpose on land over which
3:16 docs exercises jurisdiction it
3:19 would explicitly supersede any
3:21 conflicting mayoral executive
3:23 order or memorandum of
3:25 understanding entered into by
3:26 New York City finally it would
3:29 amend several definitions in
3:30 the ad code to account for
3:31 current immigration
3:33 enforcement practices which
3:34 have included the expansion of
3:37 federal agencies tasked with
3:38 conducting immigration
3:40 enforcement the committee has
3:41 received ample testimony
3:42 regarding the harm caused by
3:44 authorizing a federal
3:47 immigration office on docs
3:48 property based on isis
3:50 previous tenure on rikers
3:52 island the aggression and the
3:53 volume with which federal
3:56 immigration authorities moved
3:57 immigrants into deportation
3:59 proceedings during their time
4:00 on rikers island was alarming
4:03 with this bill New York City
4:04 will continue to protect
4:06 immigrant communities from the
4:07 enforcement of obsolete and
4:10 xenophobic federal immigration
4:11 policies and the agencies that
4:12 weaponize them the former
4:14 mayor's cursory veto message
4:15 is silent on the robust
4:18 legislative history it also
4:20 fails to explain why any
4:23 hypothetical partnerships with
4:24 federal agencies would have t
4:25 obe facilitated by federal
4:28 immigration authorities
4:29 maintaining an office or
4:30 quarters on land under d
4:33 jurisdiction accordingly the
4:34 council will step in to do
4:35 what the former Mayor
4:37 repeatedly refused to do stand
4:40 alongside New York immigrant
4:42 communities and strengthen New
4:42 York City sanctuary related
4:44 local laws before I turned t
4:47 othe bills sponsor council
4:48 member cab on to make a brief
4:50 statement I would like t
4:51 othank the committee staff for
4:52 their work on this hearing
4:53 . Senior legislative council
4:55 nicole kata senior a senator
5:00 . Senior legislative policy
5:03 analyst rebecca barilla
5:05 principal financial analyst
5:07 carolina girl principal
5:08 financial analyst navi bains
5:09 an assistant finance director
5:13 florentine cobb or finally I
5:13 would like to thank my staff
5:14 deputy chief of staff
5:16 stephanie herrera legislative
5:18 director adam bernstein and
5:19 legislative fellow winning
5:20 maura and everyone who works
5:21 behind the scenes to make this
5:24 hearing run smoothly including
5:24 our sergeant and arms I also
5:27 want to take a moment to just
5:30 ah so I do everybody that's in
5:33 the um to recognize a council
5:37 for joining us Brewer Hanks
5:39 and cab on and now it's your
5:41 turn thank you for that thank
5:44 you chair thank you former
5:46 chair appreciate both of your
5:48 leadership and support as the
5:50 lead sponsor on intro 14 12
5:53 the safer sanctuary act I
5:55 would like to urge my
5:56 colleagues to vote to override
5:58 former Mayor Eric adams veto.
5:59 We are at a crossroads in
6:02 the history of our country and
6:04 the horrifying events ongoing
6:06 in minneapolis showed us just
6:07 to assault and terrorize our
6:12 communities the safer the
6:13 safer sanctuary was designed
6:15 precisely to help prevent New
6:16 York City from becoming a
6:19 place where federal
6:20 immigration authorities are
6:21 able to attack families and
6:22 civil liberties with impunity
6:24 and this legislation
6:25 introduces critical expansions
6:27 to our existing sanctuary City
6:29 framework it extends New
6:30 york's sanctuary City
6:31 limitations on local
6:32 cooperation with federal
6:35 immigration enforcement t
6:36 oinclude all agencies and laws
6:37 being used by the trump
6:38 administration to threaten our
6:40 communities this means that
6:41 regardless of which agency is
6:43 enacting the horrific trump
6:45 vance agenda be it the united
6:48 states marshals or our
6:51 communities our covered by our
6:52 our sanctuary policies and
6:55 second it bars any future
6:57 Mayor from re establishing an
6:58 ice office in our jails as
7:00 former american Eric Mayor
7:02 Eric adams tried to do last
7:04 year these are critical
7:05 measures to protect our
7:07 communities from an
7:08 increasingly violent and
7:09 authoritarian federal
7:11 government and overriding this
7:12 veto on Thursday will
7:13 demonstrate that the City
7:14 council stands with the people
7:15 of New York City it will
7:17 demonstrate that as a body we
7:19 are striving to meet the
7:20 moment and we must state
7:22 clearly that we're not going
7:23 to allow our streets our
7:25 schools our hospitals and
7:26 public spaces to become arenas
7:28 for the federal government t
7:30 owage war on our people we must
7:32 firmly reject policies that
7:33 bring terror and division t
7:35 oour neighborhoods and protect
7:36 the civil rights of all who
7:38 call this City home and in the
7:39 words of the New York baller
7:41 and living legend brianna
7:43 stewart and millions of fellow
7:44 New York er's abolish ice
7:46 thank you chair thank you
7:48 Council Member or anyone else
7:49 would like to speak on this
7:52 bill
7:52 . Oh okay well then a
7:54 committee now take a vote on
7:56 the following items shall we
7:58 accept and file former mayors
8:01 veto message m 00 17 of 20 2
8:06 6and shall we pass introductionr
8:09 mayors rito message
8:10 notwithstanding I recommend
8:11 the yes vote and ask the clerk
8:13 to call the roll good morning
8:16 william martin committee clerk
8:18 roll call vote committee on
8:20 immigration both items are
8:21 coupled chair and carnation I
8:27 Avilés I was appreciating your
8:30 pronunciation of the chairs
8:32 name Encarnación well done ah
8:35 proud proudly vote I to
8:38 overturn the mayor's or I'm
8:40 sorry the former corrupt
8:45 mayor's veto Brewer I won't I
8:48 and I still like randy mastro
8:50 but I'm the only one thank you e
9:01 randy mastro as well Joseph
9:08 haven't I where they voted
9:08 five in the affirmative zer
9:09 othe the negative abstentions
9:13 introduction 14 12 aides been
9:13 re adopted by the committee
9:16 and m 17 has been approved to
9:18 be filed by the committee
9:20 Madam chair that is a full
9:23 committee thank you billy and
9:26 now I oh this meeting is
9:27 adjourned there you go it's
9:32 your first get get