City comptroller audit finds city mismanaged contract with migrant services provider

On Tuesday, the city comptroller’s office has released an audit of the embattled migrant services provider, DocGo.

It found that the city failed to properly keep track of taxpayer dollars to the tune of $11 million.

The nearly year-long audit of a company contracted to provide migrant services found Mayor Eric Adams’ administration failed to keep a close watch of millions in taxpayer funds.

“Eighty percent of the payments from the invoices that we reviewed were unsupported or not compliant with the contract,” City Comptroller Brad Lander said during a press conference outside a migrant shelter on West 46th Street Tuesday.

He said the failed accounting “represents a real callous disregard for taxpayer dollars.”

Lander analyzed city payments to DocGo between May and June 2023. Of the $13 million spent on housing, food and medical services, the audit found details tied to $11 million in payments were unclear.

According to the audit, the city spent $2 million on nearly 10,000 empty rooms and millions more on authorized security and medical staff spending.

“Their response was, ‘Actually, the contract is fine with you paying for unused hotel rooms,’ which we disagree with,” Lander said. ‘

“They call it nitpicking. We call it reviewing the invoices to see if the people that are billing. You have actually done the work they want to get paid for,” he continued, defending his audit.

Adams defended the city’s actions during a separate press conference at City Hall on Tuesday.

“When you get that call in the middle of the night, you need 200 rooms, a bus pulled in, you need 140 rooms, you need 300 rooms,” he said. “You don’t have time to call Motel 6. You better be prepared, and that’s what this team did.”

The city’s $432 million, no-bid contract with DocGo started in 2023. At the time, homeless migrants were arriving weekly by the thousands.

“We kept families and children off the street, which was the Mayor’s north star. And we negotiated a flat rate of approximately $170 per room because there was price gouging happening at that time,” Camille Joseph Varlack, the mayor’s chief of staff, said, backing up her boss.

Troubling reports followed about DocGo’s operations, including claims that migrants were threatened. It prompted an investigation by state Attorney General Letitia James.

James’ office confirmed to NY1 on Tuesday that the review is ongoing.

“We are proud of our partnership with HPD, through which DocGo has served 32,000 unique asylum seekers by providing 1.6 million nights of housing, over 100,000 medical and social work appointments, and millions of meals,” DocGo spokesman Thomas Meara wrote in a statement.

“We have been assured by HPD that our contract will be paid as the majority of our invoiced charges have gone directly to subcontractors and local businesses, including women, minority, and veteran-owned companies, to ensure that families arriving in New York City receive the support they need,” he added.

DocGo is still running operations at “several hotels and sites under this contract in the upstate region,” according to Meara. However, it is no longer running sites within the five boroughs as of May.

Meanwhile, Lander recently announced his mayoral bid.

When asked if he could be guilty of blurring the lines between his job and political aspirations, he explained it’s part of his job to audit city contracts.

“What New Yorkers want us to do is make sure our tax dollars are being spent the way they should be and not on vacant hotel rooms,” Lander said. “That’s what the voters in New York City elected me to do and what the taxpayers of New York City ought to expect and demand.”

Back in April, the city announced plans to end the contract. It’s set to expire at the end of the year.