PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Helen Strom, Safety Net Project at Urban Justice Center
1:46:09
ยท
3 min
Helen Strom from the Urban Justice Center's Safety Net Project testified about the urgent need to implement CityFHEPS expansion laws and highlighted significant issues with the program's administration. She criticized the delays in processing applications, lack of communication about utility allowances, and inaccuracies in the commissioner's testimony.
- Strom emphasized that the delay in implementing CityFHEPS expansion laws is causing people to become homeless or remain in shelters unnecessarily.
- She reported substantial delays in processing CityFHEPS applications, contradicting the commissioner's claims of no delays.
- Strom highlighted the lack of communication about the utility allowance benefit, potentially leaving many eligible recipients unaware of this support.
Helen Strom
1:46:09
Thanks so much.
1:46:10
My name is Helen Strom.
1:46:11
I work at the Safety Net Project at the Urban Justice Center.
1:46:14
I also support the Safety Net activists, and our members have direct experience with homelessness, public benefits, and the CityFeb's voucher.
1:46:21
Thank you for holding this hearing.
1:46:22
I'm disappointed that the commissioner didn't stay to hear from people who are actually experiencing how this program is working because I think what you've heard in the last couple of panels is much more accurate than what the commissioner testified to.
1:46:36
First of all, I wanna say that the city theft laws that were passed by the council, a year and a half ago urgently need to be implemented.
1:46:44
We are working with individuals and families every day who are being evicted, who are eligible under the new laws, who could have saved their apartments, and are ending up in the shelter system.
1:46:53
We are working with people in shelters every day who cannot get access to city theft vouchers because the laws haven't been implemented.
1:47:00
That includes fire victims such as the recent victims of the Allerton fire.
1:47:03
They would be eligible under the new laws.
1:47:05
They can't access them because the mayor continues to block access, Homeless youth, people who are working and make just a little too much, all of these people, who could have either stayed in their apartments or could be housed now are being blocked, by the mayor and his refusal to issue people the vouchers that the council expanded.
1:47:25
So I wanted to start with that.
1:47:28
I also want to speak about the serious issues that we're seeing with CityFeb's processing.
1:47:32
So last week we reached out about a, household we're working with who has been requesting a voucher and the CityFEPs voucher unit told us they're still processing shopping out of requests from the end of October.
1:47:45
Systemically, like their inbox, they're processing requests from the end of October.
1:47:49
So when the commissioner sits here and says there's no delays, that is simply not accurate.
1:47:53
That came from the head of her city FIPS unit, and to say that there's no delays in shopping letters is absolutely wrong.
1:48:00
It's a lie.
1:48:02
Also want to speak about the utility allowance.
1:48:04
This is other legislation that the council passed and they have done nothing to let existing voucher holders know that this exists.
1:48:11
It's not in the renewal paperwork.
1:48:13
There was no notice sent out, so people who are facing utility turnouts right now have no idea that there's a benefit that they're eligible for that they should have been getting for the past year, and we've brought this to the city's attention and nothing has been done.
1:48:27
And I just want to echo what people have already said about the delays at Homebase and the delays in packet processing.
1:48:33
So at Homebase, a lot of Homebase offices you have to wait 3 or 4 months just to get an initial appointment, and that's someone who's facing eviction, and at, like, potentially at the edge of being evicted from their apartment, and just to have an initial intake, it takes 3 or 4 months.
1:48:47
We have people who've been trying to get through that process for a whole year.
1:48:50
We have people who've been evicted while they're waiting for Homebase to try and process a city theft application.
1:48:54
So to say there's no delays there just defies the experience, and this is like people who are working with right to counsel attorneys and have people advocate on their behalf.
1:49:03
That just defies the experience of everyone we've worked with, we've honestly seen very similar delays, like, with the packet processing for people coming out of shelter.
1:49:11
People have to resubmit their packets over and over and over, and they lose apartments.
1:49:15
They lose apartments that they found in very difficult conditions because there's such ridiculous delays.
1:49:21
I I don't know where that number of 24 days is coming from.
1:49:24
It must be like after it's basically already approved because there's there's no way that that's the actual time period from beginning to end.
1:49:31
I've never seen them process a bracket that quickly.
1:49:34
So I I think it must be like some number based on like when you're already very far along in the process.
1:49:39
So thank you again for holding this hearing, and we're looking forward to working with the council to provide more accountability for the program, and also to get the expansion laws implemented.