Senate Bill S4616

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S4616

SPONSOR: WEIK
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the education law, in relation to prohibiting the perma-
nent or temporary housing of migrant populations in schoolhouses or on
school grounds in districts outside of a city with a population of one
million or more

 
PURPOSE:

To prohibit the use of school facilities outside New York City to house
migrants.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends section 414 of the education law to prohibit the use
schoolhouses and grounds outside a city with a population of one million
or more to provide temporary or permanent housing for migrant popu-
lations.

              

Section 2. Establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

Public school facilities are designed for education, not housing.  Hous-
ing immigrants in public schools will completely disrupt the learning
environment that students require and overwhelm existing local community
infrastructure, including healthcare, social services, and transporta-
tion. Diverting resources meant for education to other needs will crush
the financial ability of taxpayers and school districts to provide for
our local students.

The border crisis is not a hurricane or other natural disaster that may
require the use of schools and other public buildings to provide tempo-
rary shelter. The surge of immigrants is the entirely foreseeable result
of the deliberate decision by the Federal government to abandon its
responsibility to control our nation's borders. The difficulty of find-
ing permanent housing for immigrants will turn our schools into refugee
camps, creating a humanitarian and educational disaster that will take
years to overcome.

New York State and the Federal government have already permanently
damaged the educational progress of our schoolchildren with their disas-
trous COVID-19 policies. Housing immigrants in public school facilities
will punish students again by introducing even more challenges,
distractions, and disruptions into what is supposed to be a safe and
orderly educational setting. We cannot allow schoolchildren to be
victimized once again.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2023 S7391 Education

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.