PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Alana Tornello, Representative of Human Services Council
5:26:50
·
118 sec
Alana Tornello, representing the Human Services Council, urges New York City to end its 30/60 day shelter limits for new arrivals and instead invest in sustained community-driven human services. She argues that the current policy creates hardships for new arrivals, complicates service provision, and blocks sustainable pathways into NYC communities.
- Calls for redirecting resources from enforcing shelter limits to comprehensive human services and community care
- Emphasizes the need for coordinated case management, expanded legal services, and sustainable community-based housing
- Highlights the divisive impact of current policies and rhetoric towards new arrivals
Alana Tornello
5:26:50
Hello.
5:26:51
My name is Alana, and I'm testifying on behalf of the Human Services Council.
5:26:55
We are a coalition of over a 175 nonprofit human services providers in NYC.
5:27:00
For over 2 years, we've engaged 100 of providers serving new arrivals who inform the written testimony that we will submit.
5:27:07
We urge the city of New York to end its 30 60 day shelter limits for new arrivals.
5:27:12
The city should be investing instead in sustained community driven human services, especially the advocacy and support provided in continual case management and legal services via community partners.
5:27:24
These shelter limits create hardships in new arrivals.
5:27:26
And as my colleagues have described, they add costs for the city and providers by complicating and extending human services.
5:27:32
It does so by disrupting the completion of critical steps and services that bring new arrivals out of a state of crisis.
5:27:39
New arrivals who are forced to keep moving this important notices become disconnected from communities and services that link them to employment, housing, legal, and health opportunities, and are re traumatized.
5:27:48
This policy along with the lack of investment and coordination for human services blocks sustainable pathways into NYC communities.
5:27:56
With that in mind, we ask the city take all resources used to enforce shelter limits and relocation associated with the 30 60 day rule and instead redirect them towards comprehensive human services and community care, especially coordinated case management services with strong data protections, expanded capacity for legal services, sustainable community based housing, and other human services.
5:28:14
The city should then work with human services partners to design a stronger coordination and more equitable resource sharing model.
5:28:20
We continue to see resources, rules, and rhetoric in the city, send the message to new arrivals that they're not welcome, and that divisiveness has created so much anger in NYC communities, directing the real frustrations of struggling New Yorkers towards new arrivals who are not the cause of that really that pain.
5:28:36
Imagine if we invested instead in the community services that would truly help all New Yorkers, including new arrivals.
5:28:43
In the tough times ahead, let's focus on that care infrastructure.
5:28:46
Thank you for the opportunity to testify.
