A U.S. Senate panel has launched an investigation into New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's administration, citing "serious concerns" about the "rescission of executive orders related to antisemitism and boycotts of Israel."
Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Bill Cassidy, R-La., on Wednesday sent Mamdani a letter asking whether voiding the executive orders could hamper enforcement of civil rights law and risk the loss of $2.2 billion in federal funding, reported the New York Post on Thursday.
"Antisemitism is not an abstract concern in New York City; it is a lived reality for millions of students and residents, and its consequences are very serious," Cassidy wrote.
"Decisions by your administration that weaken established safeguards for Jewish students in New York and are out of alignment with federal executive orders warrant careful scrutiny," he added.
In January, a survey found a majority of Jewish voters in New York City (53%) said they felt threatened by the democratic socialist mayor's statements and similar remarks by his allies.
Mamdani, upon taking office, voided every executive order signed by former Mayor Eric Adams since the day his predecessor was indicted on federal corruption charges in September 2024.
Mamdani's actions included a June 8, 2025, order that "created the Mayor's Office to Combat Antisemitism to identify and develop efforts to eliminate antisemitism and anti-Jewish hate crime" and a Dec. 2, 2025, order opposing boycott, divestment, and sanctions policies regarding Israel.
Mamdani called Israel an apartheid state and backed the BDS movement before taking office.
Cassidy wrote that the June 2025 executive order used the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism.
"Contrary to your public assertions that 'a number of leading Jewish organizations have immense concerns around [the IHRA] definition,' many governments, international institutions, universities, NGOs, and private organizations widely recognize and encourage use of this definition to identify and address contemporary forms of antisemitism," Cassidy wrote.
The mayor's response is due Feb. 19.
Mamdani has criticized the IHRA definition for conflating criticism of Israel and Zionism with antisemitism.
"I am someone who has supported and support BDS and nonviolent approaches to address Israeli state violence," Mamdani previously told Bloomberg News.
The Dec. 2 Adams executive order also barred mayoral appointees, contracting officers, and department heads from enacting policies that discriminated against Israel or Israeli citizens.
This week, staff at the New York City Department of Health created a working group that may have been barred under Adams for accusing Israel of genocide.
The employees' "Global Oppression and Public Health Working Group" met Tuesday afternoon, and a presenter listed one of its aims as responding "to the ongoing genocide in Palestine," The Post reported.
Cassidy also cautioned that the New York City Department of Education was in line to receive $2.2 billion in federal funding for its operating budget, as of June 2025.
"Continued eligibility for this funding is contingent on compliance with federal civil rights laws and applicable executive orders designed to protect students," he wrote.
Cassidy asked Mamdani to explain how his administration will "combat antisemitism at schools" and "protect Jewish students," and to share "another possible definition of antisemitism" the city plans to adopt or any guidance it has provided to schools for handling complaints.
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