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Q&A

Cost savings from shelter time limit notices for asylum seekers

1:36:18

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169 sec

Council Member Avilés inquires about the cost savings generated from issuing time limit notices to asylum seekers in shelters. The administration representatives are unable to provide specific figures during the hearing.

DHS officials do not have immediate figures on savings from 30-day time limit notices for single adults and adult families
The city is requested to provide information on expected savings from 60-day time limits in DHS shelters
Concerns are raised about potential negative economic impacts of the policy, as estimated by the Independent Budget Office
Director Schaeffer mentions that busing cost savings are in the thousands of dollars but cannot provide an exact figure

Alexa Avilés

1:36:18

yet.

1:36:18

Okay.

1:36:21

In terms of let's see.

1:36:23

I think I'll ask a few questions, and then I'll turn it over to my colleagues, who I know are eager to to ask questions as well.

1:36:34

How much okay.

1:36:44

I think I'll jump I'll jump into cost very quickly.

1:36:47

So how much savings has DHS, generated from issuing 30 day time limit no time limit notices, to asylum singer single adults and adult families in shelter?

UNKNOWN

1:37:05

I currently do not have that number.

1:37:06

We would probably have to get back to you.

Alexa Avilés

1:37:08

Okay.

1:37:09

Thank you.

1:37:09

And if you would get back to us around how much does the city expect to save from issuing 60 day time limits, in DHS shelters as well, and when we might expect to see that and where, where we'd like to well, where where we can expect to see those savings.

1:37:28

New York City's independent budget office estimated negative consequences of this this policy, including economic impact of missed work authorizations, health care impacts, street homelessness, bussing costs, all of which we heard in the pre panel.

1:37:44

Actually, each and every one of those.

1:37:46

Has the city factored in these costs both in the short and long term when when looking at this policy?

Molly Schaeffer

1:37:55

As I mentioned when I started, I mean, none of these policies were done easily.

1:38:01

These were done to really make sure that we were protecting both our shelter system and people at their most vulnerable time.

1:38:08

We made a change yesterday as we announced to really help with some of those bussing costs, and we continue and we also made a change around mail to make sure that we're continuing to do improvements in mail so people don't lose mail.

1:38:23

One of the key things that we changed earlier this year as well was making sure that each shelter held on to any important federal mail.

1:38:32

So at that point, anyone who had gone to a different shelter could have gone back to their shelter to pick up that mail.

1:38:40

And so we we continue to make these changes as we hear, as we get input from community members, as we get input from the people in our care, and as we continue to be in different, phases of this response.

Alexa Avilés

1:38:54

So you've mentioned bussing a number of times.

1:38:56

What is the cost savings that you're calculated in in making this policy change?

Molly Schaeffer

1:39:02

So it's 1,000 of dollars.

1:39:04

I don't have the exact figure, but we can get back to you.

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Changes to 60-day shelter stay policy for families with school-aged children

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Mail access issues and new centralized mail room for shelter residents