Kat snarls at federal work laws

The state is legally barred from issuing work permits for migrants, which leaders have said would help alleviate the continuing crisis, Gov. Hochul said Tuesday.

Hochul said her office looked into the possibility of issuing state permits for the wave of asylum seekers arriving in New York, but that plan would leave employers legally vulnerable to federal immigration laws.

“I cannot indemnify or protect the employers from any kind of federal prosecution . . . That’s the only barrier. It’s a big one,” Hochul told reporters Monday.”

Under the plan first alluded to in September, migrants would’ve been hired by the state, then subcontracted out to other employers as a way to get around a beleaguered federal system for approving work permits.

White House officials have said they don’t endorse the idea.

Federal law requires asylum seekers to wait 150 days before being considered for a work permit. That timeline is exacerbated further because of backlogs in the approval system.

Without action from the feds, states such as New York are stuck operating within current immigration laws prescribing work requirements.

With Congress deadlocked on the issue, it’s unlikely the current system for work authorizations will change in the near future.

Hochul also continued her calls Tuesday for additional federal funding to support the city and state’s efforts to manage the asylum-seekers crisis.

She called on Congress to support a supplemental funding request from President Biden that would pump cash toward the migrant crisis.