NYC pols urge Kathy Hochul to temporarily waive ‘sanctuary’ laws

Gov. Hochul must use her emergency powers to temporarily waive the Big Apple’s controversial “sanctuary city” laws because of increased terror threats posed by the ongoing migrant crisis, a coalition of City Council members demanded this week.

“New York City is a prime target for terrorism, and we cannot afford to be complacent in the face of such threats,” Council members Robert Holden (D-Queens), Joe Borelli (R-Staten Island) and the rest of the nine-member “Common Sense Caucus” wrote Wednesday.

Sanctuary laws prevent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from cooperating fully with local law enforcement — and that “severely hampers our efforts to ensure the safety of our residents,” they wrote.

“The recent surge in violent crime, including incidents involving migrant gangs in Central Park and Queens parks — where they have been reported to be raping, robbing, assaulting, and even shooting at police officers — demands immediate and decisive action,” the officials added.

The six Republicans and three moderate Dems highlighted other problems, including: the June arrests in New York, Los Angeles and Philadelphia of Tajikistani nationals affiliated with ISIS-K, and a Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General report last month that “revealed significant flaws in border vetting processes, underscore the severity” of terror threats.

The governor can temporarily halt NYC’s sanctuary city status through executive order, but any permanent changes must be approved by the City Council, which is dominated by left-wing pols.

The Big Apple’s sanctuary status dates back to 1989 when then-Mayor Ed Koch put it in place to help ensure non-citizens who are victims of crimes can cooperate with authorities without fear of being deported.

The rules have been updated three times, including a series of controversial left-wing policies pushed into law from 2014 to 2018 by then-Mayor Bill de Blasio and then-Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito which dramatically limited the NYPD and city Correction and Probation departments’ ability to cooperate with ICE agents.

The rule changes also outlawed city buildings, including the Rikers Island jail complex, and other city resources from being used to enforce federal immigration laws.

In February, Mayor Eric Adams called for the rules to be loosened so migrants “suspected” of “serious” crimes could also be turned over to ICE — as they once were under the city’s earlier sanctuary policies.

Hochul’s staff did not return messages.

In June, caucus members asked a mayoral-appointed Charter Revision Commission to put a referendum question on the ballot to decide whether to roll back the sanctuary laws to the pre-de Blasio era.

The commission declined to take on the issue.

Holden and Borelli, who co-chair the caucus, also drafted legislation to repeal the sanctuary laws — but admit it’s a pipe dream to believe the bill would pass.