Audit: ICE Entered NYC Hospitals, City Buildings

New York City said on May 22 that a mayoral audit found U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents repeatedly entered hospitals, homeless shelters and other city facilities during enforcement actions. The report said ICE made 5,567 arrests in the New York City area between Jan. 20, 2025, and March 10, 2026, a 71% increase from the comparable period at the end of President Joe Biden’s administration. Mayor Zohran Mamdani ordered the review after taking office this year, and City Hall paired the findings with more than two dozen recommendations aimed at tightening how agencies handle contact with federal immigration authorities. City officials said the changes are meant to reinforce existing sanctuary laws and limit access to city property without a judicial warrant. ### Where did the audit say ICE showed up? The May 22 audit said federal immigration agents were not confined to immigration courts or federal offices. The review described entries into public hospitals, shelters and other city-run properties, according to the mayor’s office summary and contemporaneous coverage of the findings. City officials said those incidents exposed gaps between New York’s sanctuary policies and how front-line staff handled encounters with federal officers. (nyc.gov) New York’s rules already restrict non-local law enforcement from entering city property without a judicial warrant in many circumstances. The audit said agencies nonetheless needed clearer building-access rules, stronger reporting requirements and more consistent staff guidance when ICE officers arrive at city sites. ### How large was the increase in immigration arrests? (documentedny.com) The audit said ICE arrested 5,567 people in the New York City area from Jan. 20, 2025, through March 10, 2026. That was a 71% increase over the same number of days at the end of the previous administration, according to the report. More than half of the arrests took place at immigration court at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan, the audit said. (amny.com) Reuters reported that the Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond on May 22 to a request for comment on the audit. Mamdani said in a statement that “no one should live in fear because of their status,” according to Reuters. ### What did the city say agencies were doing wrong? (nyc.gov) The audit said some city agencies were sharing more information than required or operating under protocols that left room for unnecessary cooperation. Reuters reported that one recommendation called for auditing emails between Department of Correction officials and ICE to identify any improper communications. Another recommendation called for ending daily reports to ICE on the national origin of certain non-citizens admitted into custody, which the audit said was not required by federal, state or local law. (usnews.com) Other recommendations focused on shelter incident reporting, access to city properties and internal tracking of detainer requests, according to coverage of the report and the mayor’s office rollout. City Hall said seven agencies would adopt changes under the Executive Order 13 process. (usnews.com) ### Why did City Hall order this review now? Mamdani signed Executive Order 13 on Feb. 6, 2026, directing agencies to audit their interactions with federal immigration authorities and creating an interagency response structure, according to city reporting on the order. The move came as immigrant advocates and local officials raised alarms over stepped-up ICE activity in New York during Trump’s second term. (lavocedinewyork.com) The audit’s release followed months of reporting about ICE appearances at city shelters and other sites. Gothamist reported earlier that federal officers visited city shelters at least 23 times between January and May, after no such appearances in 2024. ### What happens next inside city agencies? The May 22 report laid out more than two dozen recommendations for agencies including the Department of Correction, police and social-service agencies, according to Reuters and local coverage. (amny.com) City Hall said the next step is implementation: revising protocols, tightening access rules and standardizing how staff document and escalate contact with federal immigration officers. (gothamist.com) City officials tied those steps to Executive Order 13, which requires agencies to review their practices and publish changes where needed. The audit report and recommendations were released by the mayor’s office on May 22, and that document is the city’s baseline for any follow-up oversight by agencies, advocates and the public. (nyc.gov) (usnews.com)