New York, New York - New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday called on the Biden administration to re-designate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Central American migrants and expand other pathways for asylum seekers to access work permits.

Adams urged the Department of Homeland Security to re-designate TPS for Venezuela, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan, South Sudan, and Cameroon and grant a first-time designation for Guatemala.

TPS is a temporary legal status conferred upon nationals of designated countries who are already residing in the US when conditions like natural disasters or political instability make it dangerous for them to return.

Adams also called on the Biden administration to expand access to humanitarian parole for asylum seekers and take steps to reduce application processing times, which should make it easier for migrants and asylum seekers to obtain work permits.

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All actions of the proposed actions can be taken by the US executive branch without the need for congressional approval, the mayor noted.

Adams' remarks came as New York City continues to receive as many as 200 asylum seekers per day, he said in a news release.

The mayor and other city officials are expecting this number to jump after the planned expiration of Title 42, set for May 11.

Amid growing calls for immigration reform, President Biden has already stoked controversy by proposing a new rule that will effectively bar Central American migrants from claiming asylum in the US, while expanding immigration opportunities for people from Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, and Haiti with sponsors already residing in the US.

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Meanwhile, Adams said New York City has been left to shoulder the costs of supporting incoming asylum seekers without adequate state or federal assistance.

"As a city, we have done everything in our power to provide support to the tens of thousands of asylum seekers who have arrived at our doorstep," the mayor said.

"While New York City has shouldered the costs of this crisis largely alone, we have always said that this is a national crisis that requires a coordinated, comprehensive response from the federal government," he added.

Members of the National TPS Alliance celebrated Adams' call for an re-designation of TPS as the first step toward justice for Central Americans in the US.

"Today, Mayor Adams has uplifted the same call we have been making to President Biden since Day One of his administration – he must use his executive authority, the power of his pen, to protect migrants and refugees who need and deserve immediate relief," Delmy Garcia, a TPS holder in New York City, said in a press release.

"The United States owes a profound moral and historical debt to our migrant communities. Its long history of destructive political intervention in our native countries, the constant mistreatment of our people at the border and all over this country, and the economic contributions we migrants have made – and continue to make – through our labor, even in the midst of the pandemic, are fueling our calls for justice," she continued.

"TPS is the bare minimum of what this administration must provide for our communities. We need Permanent Residency! We need Equal Rights! But now, President Biden can and must use his executive authority to do what is right and provide relief for those who need it!" Garcia insisted.