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TESTIMONY
Molly Schaeffer, Interim Director of New York City Mayor's Office of Asylum Seeker Operations (MOASO), on the City's Efforts and Challenges in Supporting Asylum Seekers
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Molly Schaeffer details the comprehensive response of New York City to the asylum seeker crisis, emphasizing the city's leadership and the challenges faced.
- Schaeffer highlights the provision of shelter, food, legal support, and other essential services to over 179,000 individuals.
- She discusses the establishment of emergency shelters and advocacy for work authorization, emphasizing New York City's humanitarian approach.
- Schaeffer outlines the challenges of resource constraints and the need for state and federal support, particularly in light of proposed legislation that could impact the city's management ability.
- The testimony includes the implementation of shelter time limits paired with case management to aid in the self-sufficiency of asylum seekers.
- She concludes by inviting council members to visit shelter sites, demonstrating openness and transparency in operations.
Molly Schaeffer
0:52:19
Before we start, I just wanted to take a moment to say that in the midst of this humanitarian crisis, it's important to be mindful of the individual people who have traveled to the United States to start new lives.
0:52:31
Thank you to the brave people.
0:52:33
Who spoke today and to the council members who invited them.
0:52:37
We're about to discuss the city's response to this unprecedented crisis and how we have managed and are managing it, which often means talking about things at a very high level.
0:52:48
But when we talk about the 170,000 people that come through the city's care or the 64,000 that are currently in our care, this administration never loses sight of the individual people and the lives impact did.
0:53:02
Thank you again for sharing your stories.
0:53:07
Now I will start.
0:53:09
Good morning, chair Ayala, and members of the general welfare committee.
0:53:13
I'm Molly Schafer, Interim Director of the New York City mayor's office of asylum seeker operations, Owasso.
0:53:20
I'm happy to be here to before you today to discuss the city's ongoing efforts to support migrants arriving in New York City and the negative impact proposed intro 210 would have on the city's ability to effectively manage the asylum seeker response.
0:53:35
Since April 2022, New York City has led the nation's response to the migrant emergency, providing immediate shelter, food, legal support, and other essential services to over a 179,000 people.
0:53:49
Our city has managed this emergency with compassion and decency We have relied on experienced agency leaders and hundreds of public servants who have been supporting this effort while also managing their day jobs.
0:54:03
Let's be clear, there was no playbook on how to respond to a global humanitarian crisis.
0:54:08
But what we did and continue to do is what New Yorkers do best in times of crisis.
0:54:14
We step up to help each other and we find creative solutions.
0:54:18
For nearly 2 years, that is what New Yorkers and people all over the country and world have seen.
0:54:24
New York City taking action.
0:54:27
Using the limited resources and tools available to us, we have opened 216 emergency sites.
0:54:34
And are currently serving over 64,000 people.
0:54:37
And importantly, no families with children have had to sleep on the street.
0:54:42
I think that statement is sometimes overlooked.
0:54:45
As commissioner Park knows all too well, it normally takes years to open a traditional shelter.
0:54:51
We stood up over 200 emergency sites and fully staffed and operationalized them in less than 2 years.
0:54:58
That is a significant feat.
0:55:00
One of these sites is our arrival center, something I'm immensely proud of, which operates 24 hours, 7 days per week with comprehensive on-site services.
0:55:10
Many partners from all levels of government and around the world have traveled to observe our operations with the intention of adopting our best practices.
0:55:19
We are proud of the work we have accomplished, and we recognize that more needs to be done.
0:55:24
A national humanitarian crisis deserves a whole of government approach that addresses needs municipal governance alone cannot meet.
0:55:33
We hear from people in our care every day.
0:55:35
They wanna work.
0:55:37
We've been steadfast in our advocacy on work authorization to the federal government.
0:55:41
And due to this advocacy, temporary protected status was extended to Venezuelans.
0:55:47
While we appreciate the support we have received from our state and federal partners thus far, the work is not done.
0:55:54
We need additional resources to keep pace with the daily influx of new arrivals into city emergency sites.
0:56:01
New York City has stepped up to support individuals and families arriving from the border, and we know more can be achieved.
0:56:09
We've seen inspiring examples of our core values.
0:56:13
New Yorkers opening their hearts, donating book bags, clothing, and food to welcome our newest neighbors.
0:56:20
New York City's future will continue to be built on our collective responsibility to help each regardless of immigration status.
0:56:29
After the expiration of title 42 in May 2023, the city had to respond to the biggest surge of new arrivals into the city's care since the beginning of the current crisis, which hit a peak of 4300 arrivals over a 1 week period.
0:56:45
Given this historic influx and the need to immediately bring on capacity, we pursued additional models to bolster our response, including establishing emergency respite sites and launching our upstate hotel program at about a dozen sites.
0:57:01
Despite around the clock efforts to increase our sheltering capacity, it became clear that a pipeline of emergency sites was only one part of the equation.
0:57:10
At the same time, cities like Denver and Chicago were stretched beyond capacity and implemented time limits on the length of stay at their shelters.
0:57:20
Other cities like San Diego and El Paso capped their accommodations and did not open any new sites to accommodate the influx.
0:57:29
In July, we established a 60 day time limit on shelter stay as for single adults and adult families.
0:57:36
This was a hard decision based on careful consideration at the individual and policy level.
0:57:42
In September, this time limit for adults was reduced to 30 days.
0:57:48
Faced with an increasing number of new arrivals severe capacity constraints and an understanding that the cavalry from the federal government was not coming we needed to continue to prioritize beds for families with children.
0:58:02
In January, we began to implement the 60 day policy for families with tran.
0:58:08
As someone who's been at the front lines of welcoming and supporting new arrivals since April 2022, This was not a decision made lightly.
0:58:18
We paired these time limits with case management to support families in the development of their plans for how to adapt and charter course for their future.
0:58:27
Case management teams engage with clients to identify the barriers preventing them from leaving shelter and then a assist with those goals.
0:58:36
Shelter time limits, paired with case management, are policies designed to help more households achieve self sufficiency, find stable housing arrangements, and leave the shelter system.
0:58:48
The shelter notices also allow us to accommodate new arrivals as people discharge.
0:58:54
Currently, about 24% of single adults and adult families return seeking another placement.
0:59:00
And 50% of families with children return and reapply.
0:59:03
These policies are working.
0:59:05
More people are taking that next step on their journey and moving out of shelter.
0:59:09
Thoughtful planning, coordination, and engagement has gone into the implementation of these policies, particularly with our colleagues at New York City Public Schools.
0:59:18
As we've publicly stated, our goal is to minimize disruption to children's education, and we remain focused on this goal.
0:59:27
I want to thank the New York City public schools for their unwavering commitment to serving the nearly 36,000 students in temporary housing enrolled in our schools.
0:59:38
The number of people in the city's emergency sites has steadily decreased from over 68,000 to under 65,000 in recent weeks, an indication that the city's intensive case management legal services and reticketing initiatives are working.
0:59:55
Our team works diligently every day to improve our operations and to support our clients working toward their American dream.
1:00:03
I will now turn to intro 210 to share the administration's position on this bill.
1:00:08
To date, over 179,000 people have received assistance at the city's emergency sites.
1:00:15
And we have centered our work with compassion, care, and respect.
1:00:20
We need this tool to carefully manage services because we don't control the numbers of new people arriving into this city.
1:00:28
Without this tool, we can't manage at all.
1:00:30
We are at the whims of southern cities, governors, and border politics.
1:00:35
This intervention is a common sense practice employed across the city the country by cities like Denver and Chicago.
1:00:42
We've taken this step the support a step further by pairing time limits with case management.
1:00:50
People wanna work.
1:00:51
They do not want to live or raise their families in emergency shelters in perpetuity.
1:00:55
This is evident in the data I shared.
1:00:57
About 24% of single adults and adult families and about 50% of families with children return seeking another placement.
1:01:05
Individuals and families are moving on from what was intended to be a temporary emergency based accommodation.
1:01:13
This bill would restrict the city's ability to fund the work we are doing to identify their needs and support them.
1:01:19
We strongly encourage the council to work with us in service of the people in our care, and this bill does not achieve that.
1:01:27
As stated, We will continue to do all that we can to serve new arrivals in our care.
1:01:33
For nearly 2 years and with no end in sight, the city continues leading the response to a national emergency.
1:01:40
Our limited levers and tools should not be hindered by bills that will disrupt the good work we are doing.
1:01:45
The work that has been acknowledged by leaders around the nation, at the state and federal level, and around the world.
1:01:52
We look forward to continuing to work with the council, and I welcome an opportunity for you to join me for a visit at 1 of our shelter sites, the asylum application help center or arrival center to see our operations up close.
1:02:05
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today, and I'm happy to answer any of your questions.