PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Jason Rodriguez, Policy Associate at Legal Action Center
1:44:11
ยท
127 sec
Jason Rodriguez, a policy associate at the Legal Action Center and formerly incarcerated individual, testified about the negative impacts of the $17 million cut to programming services at Rikers Island in 2023. He emphasized the critical nature of these programs and the inadequacy of the Department of Corrections' response.
- Rodriguez highlighted a 29% drop in group-based programming and a 30% decrease in one-on-one support within the first four months of the cuts.
- He criticized the DOC's claim that correctional officers could provide the same services as skilled providers, calling this assumption "reckless and harmful."
- While the DOC is now issuing RFPs to restore some programs, Rodriguez argued that the proposed funding is still $3 million less than what was cut and that full restoration is necessary.
Jason Rodriguez
1:44:11
Yes.
1:44:11
Thank you, chair nurse, chair 1, members of the criminal justice and contracts committee for holding this important hearing.
1:44:17
My name is Jason Rodriguez.
1:44:18
I'm a policy associate at the Legal Accident Center, and I am formally incarcerated.
1:44:22
I spent 24 years incarcerated at the age of 18.
1:44:26
In 2023, New York City Department of Corrections abruptly cut 17,000,000 from programs at Rikers, programs that provided essential support to detain individuals.
1:44:37
These weren't just any programs.
1:44:39
They provided people with evidence based on care, including treatment for substance use disorder and trauma to protect their health and keep them alive.
1:44:46
By cutting them, the administration not only disregarded the needs but actively put lives at risk.
1:44:51
Even with these facts, the administration claimed the Department of Corrections could provide the same services at a lower cost with correctional officers.
1:44:58
That assumption was not just wrong, it was reckless and harmful.
1:45:02
Replacing skilled service providers with security personnel has left people without access to meaningful programs, setting them up for abuse, neglect, or even death.
1:45:11
Within the 1st 4 months of these cuts, group based programming at Rikers dropped by 29% and 1 on 1 support fell by over 30%.
1:45:18
People were left without meaningful engagement, feeling tensions, despair, and instability, outcomes that are well documented.
1:45:25
After nearly a half, after nearly a year and a half, DOC is now requesting proposals to restore some of the programs that had been cut.
1:45:32
While this was a necessary step, it is still not enough.
1:45:36
The full rest of the full restoration of funding is critical to ensuring that the people receive support they need.
1:45:42
These RFPs offer approximately 3,000,000 less than the full amount that was cut in 2023.
1:45:47
Furthermore, the fact that these services are only now being put back out for bid underscores a much deeper issue.
1:45:52
Doc was never capable of providing them on its own.
1:45:55
The RFPs released by DOC made clear that when community based providers were defunded, even the most basic care, substance misuse treatment, trauma informed therapy, and transitional planning disappeared, leaving people without critical support.
1:46:09
This is not just about funding or contracts.
1:46:11
The conditions described in these off these instances of self harm, lack of basic mental health
James Conroy
1:46:16
Thank you.
1:46:16
Your time's expired.
Jason Rodriguez
1:46:17
Thank you.