How much of New York City's asylum‑seeker spending has been reimbursed by the state and federal government through 2026?
Executive summary
New York City has documented roughly $1.25–1.26 billion in State reimbursements/advances for asylum‑seeker costs received through mid‑2025, against a State commitment to reimburse the City for an estimated $3.25 billion for FY2023–FY2026 (leaving roughly $1.99 billion outstanding as of July 31, 2025) [1] [2]. Public reporting in the provided sources does not show a comparable, confirmed federal reimbursement total through 2026; the City has sought federal support (asking for roughly $3 billion through 2026) but the sources do not document federal payments received to that end [3] [4].
1. What the City says it has received from the State and what remains unpaid
New York City’s management and oversight publications report that the State committed an estimated $3.25 billion in direct aid to the City for asylum‑seeker costs, of which approximately $1.25 billion was advanced to the City (OMB tracker) and the Comptroller’s Office records $1.26 billion in State funding received as of July 31, 2025; those same Comptroller materials state $1.99 billion remains outstanding to reach the $3.25 billion budgeted reimbursable amount for FY2023–FY2026 [1] [2].
2. How Statewide State spending compares with the City’s receipts
The New York State Comptroller’s tracking tool reports $2.58 billion in State emergency spending related to asylum seekers statewide through November 30, 2025, while the State’s financial plan shows a larger multi‑year commitment (the $4.3 billion statewide package) that includes the City’s $3.25 billion share; these figures illustrate the difference between statewide appropriations and the slice already flowed or advanced to New York City [5] [1].
3. The federal piece: requests, expectations and the evidentiary gap
City statements and national reporting show the Adams administration sought roughly $3 billion in federal reimbursement through 2026 to cover asylum‑related costs, and the Mayor’s budgets and public materials have repeatedly urged federal aid, but none of the supplied sources documents a cumulative, confirmed federal reimbursement amount paid to the City through 2026—only the City’s requests and expectations [3] [4] [6]. The absence of a clear federal payment total in these sources is a critical information gap.
4. How much of total City spending that State aid covers — and why precise shares vary by report
Different official trackers show different totals for the City’s asylum expenditures (for example, the City reported spending more than $6.9 billion since 2022 in one mayoral transcript, while the State Comptroller lists year‑by‑year City expenditures through November 2025) and, against those totals, the roughly $1.25–$1.26 billion the City has received from the State covers only a portion of accumulated City costs; exact percentage calculations depend on which spending baseline is used and on whether future, budgeted State advances are recognized [6] [5] [2].
5. Alternative interpretations, incentives and what to look for next
City and State documents emphasize commitments and budgeted amounts (politically useful signals of support), while independent oversight (Comptroller, State Comptroller) records what has actually been advanced or received; this creates a recurring tension between promises and cash flows that benefits officials who want to show “commitment” while deferring hard budget hits. The available sources make clear the State has both budgeted more and advanced some funds, but they do not show a full reconciliation of promised State aid or any confirmed federal reimbursements through 2026—readers should treat the $3.25 billion State commitment as authorized funding, not fully realized payments, and should expect future reporting to clarify how much of the outstanding $1.99 billion is ultimately paid [1] [2] [5].