New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced a taxpayer-funded program providing pre-paid debit cards to illegal immigrants.
The program will not be renewed after January 2025.
The cards were designed to allow migrant families to purchase groceries and other supplies.
“Through the immediate response cards pilot program, we were able to reduce food waste, redirect millions of dollars to our local economy, and provide more culturally relevant food to more than 2,600 migrant families in our care,” a city hall spokesperson said. “As we move towards more competitive contracting for asylum-seeker programs, we have chosen not to renew the emergency contract for this pilot program once the one-year term concludes.”
The $53 million pilot program was first announced in February 2024.
Adams spokesperson Kayla Mamelak said at the time that the initiative would “provide families with the ability to purchase fresh food for their culturally relevant diets and the baby supplies of their choosing, but the pilot program is expected to save New York City more than $600,000 per month, or more than $7.2 million annually.”
American Faith reported that New York City is seeking 14,000 hotel rooms to house illegal immigrants through 2025. An estimated 150 hotels are currently serving as migrant shelters.
