New York City taxpayers have been hit with another costly mismanagement scandal. A recent audit by the New York City Comptroller's Office revealed that the city overpaid millions to upstate hotels and subcontractors for services related to sheltering illegal immigrants. The audit, covering a brief two-month period in May and June of 2023, has uncovered egregious overspending, unauthorized payments, and a lack of oversight.
The audit focused on payments made to over 30 hotels-turned-shelters managed by DocGo, a major city contractor. DocGo, which was responsible for setting up and managing these temporary shelters, received $11 million in payments that auditors found questionable. Approximately 80% of these payments were either unauthorized or lacked sufficient documentation to justify the expenses.
Migrants have overtaken luxury hotels in New York City.
That hotel is RAKING it in!
What rates are they getting per night per room from NYC taxpayer dollars? $300 per night? $500 per night per room? More?
That is a great deal for new migrant arrivals coming over the border.… pic.twitter.com/WawupED95r
— Wall Street Silver (@WallStreetSilv) October 2, 2023
Among the most concerning findings was the city’s payment of $1.7 million for nearly 10,000 vacant hotel rooms. The audit revealed that one hotel in Newburgh billed the city $57,000 for empty rooms in early May, and DocGo, in turn, received an additional $40,000 in commissions for these unoccupied spaces. This is just one example of the kind of financial abuse highlighted in the audit.
Moreover, the audit uncovered $2.5 million in payments for unauthorized services, including security, medical, and social services. At one Newburgh hotel, the number of security personnel billed exceeded the contract's limits by eightfold, with the hotel claiming over 20 guards on various shifts without the city’s written approval. These inflated bills were paid without question by the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD), which oversees DocGo and its subcontractors.
They’re taking matters into their own hands and destroying a “migrant hotel” in the UK.. NYC, Chicago and DC should take notes 📝 pic.twitter.com/fMQy800uX6
— ⭐️Da Geechee Barbie🌴🇺🇸 (@MissInfoShow__) August 4, 2024
Food services also saw significant overbilling. The same Newburgh hotel, for instance, billed for 1,288 meals on May 26, despite the stated occupancy requiring only 388 meals and snacks. This discrepancy suggests a systematic exploitation of the city’s funds, with food purchases far exceeding the actual needs of the residents.
The audit also highlighted broader concerns about the overall management of New York City’s asylum-seeker services. The city has awarded 340 contracts, valued at approximately $5.7 billion, to various contractors across 14 city agencies. Most of these contracts were awarded on an emergency basis with little to no oversight, leading to significantly inflated costs. For example, the Texas-based disaster firm SLSCO LP charged the city nearly double the rate for off-site managers compared to another contractor, and security services from multiple vendors were billed at rates far higher than what the city typically pays for similar positions.
The situation has been exacerbated by the overwhelming influx of over 150,000 migrants into New York City since 2022. This surge in asylum seekers, driven in part by Texas Governor Greg Abbott’s policy of busing migrants to sanctuary cities, has stretched the city’s resources thin. In response, Mayor Eric Adams declared a state of emergency in October 2022, which allowed the city to rapidly ramp up its shelter operations under the Right-to-Shelter laws. However, this emergency response has also opened the door to widespread financial abuse and mismanagement, as evidenced by the recent audit.
The Comptroller’s Office report underscores the urgent need for stricter oversight and accountability in the city’s handling of migrant services. With the city's budget already under strain, the wasteful spending revealed by this audit represents a significant burden on New York taxpayers. As New York City continues to grapple with the challenges posed by the ongoing migrant crisis, the revelations of this audit will likely fuel further debate over the city’s handling of immigration and its broader implications for fiscal responsibility.
What are these jackass Kathy and dumb Adams doing wasting millions of dollars of taxpayers money on illegals and doesn’t know where all the money is going. Why is democrats never have to account for money laundering. These democrats are corrupt criminals and should be impeached and investigated they always get away with their corruption. As a taxpayer my money shouldn’t be spent on illegals who came hear illegally we have Americans that worked their whole lives here and are getting very little social security payments. This is disgusting that these democrats do to their own people. These illegals are are criminals by law and the constitution and these democrats are forming Treason by assisting their corrupt activities by allowing them to break the laws. Only jackass keep voting for democrats they never learn democrats don’t care about you at all except for your money. Wake up America before it’s to late to save our America. Vote for Trump who loves America.