Today, House Committee on Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) and Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chairman Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) led a letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams as part of their continued investigation into the migrant encampment on national park property at Floyd Bennett Field (FBF). In part, the members wrote:

"The Committee would like to understand how both the City of New York (NYC) and the State of New York are accounting for the need to declare a disaster declaration in light of the arrival of noncitizen migrants and what, if any, increased federal funding or reduced permitting timelines this may bring to bear. In addition, it is the Committee’s understanding that Gov. Hochul personally advocated for the lease at Floyd Bennett Field despite the lack of running water or electricity at the site. As such, the Committee is interested in learning more about both her and Mayor Adams’ interest in this clearly deficient site.

"Moreover, while spending $640.9 million in taxpayer dollars for Fiscal Year 2024 alone to assist local and state governments in managing a self-inflicted migrant crisis, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) allocated the largest single award to NYC. As part of its Shelter and Services Program, DHS allocated over $59 million from the program for the NYC Office of Management and Budget to ‘off-set allowable costs incurred for services associated with noncitizen migrant arrivals.’ The Committee seeks to ensure this funding is fully accounted for, including the potential transfer of funds to unauthorized accounts, and therefore seeks information on how NYC allocated funding from the Shelter and Services Program."

To read the full letter, click here.

Background

The Biden-Harris administration established a migrant encampment at FBF, in the Gateway National Recreation Area in NYC, on Sept. 14, 2023. In September 2024, the National Park Service quietly issued an extension of the original lease for an additional year.

The House Committee on Natural Resources held a hearing over a year ago to hear directly from local officials, address their concerns and condemn the unprecedented action by the Biden-Harris administration to use national park land for a migrant encampment. However, Hochul and Adams continue ignoring these local voices as they actively asked the Biden-Harris administration to renew the lease. 

The committee has also worked on legislative solutions like H.R. 5283, the Protecting our Communities from Failure to Secure the Border Act of 2023, which prohibits federal funding from being used to house illegal immigrants on any federal lands. The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 5283 on Nov. 29, 2023.

The committee has launched a thorough investigation into the FBF lease, which involves requests for document productions, briefings and interviews from several federal agencies. The committee has also continued to uncover details about the direct involvement of Hochul and Adams in the selection of the FBF site.