A Texas transportation company is taking the nation’s third largest city to federal court, ratcheting up a legal battle over the migrant crisis that’s left U.S. cities struggling

A Texas transportation company is taking the nation’s third largest city to federal court, ratcheting up a legal battle over the migrant crisis that’s left U.S. cities struggling for more than a year.

The lawsuit against Chicago comes amid a larger political battle involving federal immigration policy and arguments about the rights and treatment of asylum seekers.

Since 2022, Texas has sent more than 100,000 migrants to Democrat-led “sanctuary cities,” as it has handled surging numbers at the Mexico-U.S. border in recent years. The state has contracts with multiple bus companies to send asylum seekers north and recently began chartering planes.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he launched his busing operation to ease the burden on border cities, adding that the federal government needs to take action on immigration reform. He argues that migrants choose their destinations, get free tickets and the cities should live up to their promise of welcoming all.

But the influx has overwhelmed major U.S. cities, namely Chicago, New York and Denver, with mayors making their own pleas for federal help. They call Abbott’s approach inhumane with buses arriving at all hours and with no passenger lists or coordination, particularly for people who have already faced long, often dangerous, journeys to get to the U.S. Many migrants, mostly from Venezuela, have been arriving in the brutal cold without winter coats.