What will happen if the ‘right to shelter’ law is rolled back in New York City?

40-year-old law is in jeopardy after weeks of debate about city's obligation to protect 100,000 migrants sent from the US border

In a late Tuesday night email, the administration of New York City's mayor, Eric Adams, asked a New York supreme court justice to allow it to ignore the state's longstanding right to shelter" law in certain circumstances.

Dating back to the Depression, a provision of the New York state constitution stated that aid, care and support of the needy are public concerns". A consent decree resolving the 1981 case Callahan v Carey and various lawsuits built on that foundation. Now anyone in New York City can access guaranteed shelter with required minimum standards like 3ft between beds, access to lockers and showers, and basic toiletries. But that 40-year-old law is in jeopardy, amid a push from the city's executive.