New York will pay $65G a day to keep Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island open during government shutdown

Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday the state will keep the Statue of Liberty open after the iconic monument was closed following the federal government shutdown Friday night.

The national monument, along with Ellis Island, which are managed by the federal government, will cost New York about $65,000 a day to keep open. Cuomo said New York will pay the federal employees from both landmarks.

“She has the day off today, she’s resting, she deserves it ... but she’s going to go back to work tomorrow,” Cuomo said about the statue from the water in Wagner Park. “That is an economic problem for the state of New York ... and that is one of the best economic investments we’ve made in a long time.”

Cuomo said the last time the government shut down in 2013, New York State stepped in as well, but took 12 days to do so.

“We learned our lesson,” he said. “This time we’re stepping in immediately.”

Cuomo said both the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island will be open Monday “as normal,” and will be funded by the state for the remainder of the shutdown. On Saturday he referred to the landmarks’ closing as a “gross injustice.”

He said the Statue of Liberty is “a major income generator for New York State and we don’t want to lose the income.”

On Sunday, however, several tourists were disappointed to learn they couldn’t step foot on the island, many in the city for the first time. Some decided to buy a ticket and take a loop around the monument, while others made their way toward the Staten Island ferry instead.

The Statue of Liberty, Cuomo said, is symbolic of the immigration debate happening in Congress right now.

“We have the Statue of Liberty in our harbor ... it’s all about welcoming people,” he said. “The concept of closing the doors to immigrants is repugnant to the concept of America.”