New York's U.S. House Republicans slammed Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams for awarding billions in "no-bid" emergency contracts to address the migrant crisis.
Adams, meanwhile, says the city needs federal assistance to help offset the cost of helping migrants, which he says could swell to $12 billion over three years.
"Today I led a letter to Governor Hochul and Mayor Adams highlighting the problem several of my New York colleagues and I have with New York City and Albany awarding no-contract bids at exorbitant prices for services pertaining to the migrant crisis," Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., said on social media platform X, Wednesday, with a link to a New York Post story.
"While NYC and Albany continue to request federal dollars to address the migrant crisis, they’re doing nothing to ensure these funds are spent appropriately. The disregard for taxpayer money — whether from federal, state, or local taxes — is appalling and has gone on far too long," Lawler added.
Lawler's letter was co-signed by House GOP Chair Elise Stefanik and New York Reps. Nicole Malliotakis, Claudia Tenney, Brandon Williams, Anthony D’Esposito, Nick Langworthy, and Marc Molinaro. Embattled Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., was not asked to sign the letter, the Post reported.
The letter to the governor and mayor identified two state contracts valued at $1.6 billion in total to two Texas-based firms: Garner Environmental Services (GES) and Cotton Commercial, as first reported by the Albany Times Union.
The contract to GES was awarded after the company contributed $5,000 to Hochul’s campaign, the Times Union said.
A no-bid $637 million contract awarded to Digital Gadgets for COVID-19 testing coincided with owner Charles Tebele and associates raising $300,000 for Hochul’s 2022 campaign.
Hochul's political advisers also hired Tebele's son to work on her campaign, the Post reported.
"This latest no-bid contract stunt, paired with their disastrous handling of the migrant crisis that they’re shipping all across the state, shows just how unprepared they are for their roles," Lawler told the Post.
"I hope that New Yorkers are watching this disaster unfold and thinking hard about how their dollars are being spent. With a budget gap looming that may run into the tens of billions of dollars, no-bid contracts handed over to Hochul and Adams donors are the last thing our state needs."
The lawmakers' letter also mentioned a $432 million emergency contract the Adams administration awarded to DocGo, which provides services to migrants the city has sent to upstate hotels.
The New York Times reported that migrants have complained about being misled and mistreated by DocGo.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.