Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
Q&A
Current investment in immigration legal services
2:43:32
·
4 min
Council Member Avilés asks MOIA and OASO officials about the current total investment in immigration legal services. Officials provide information on funding allocations for various programs.
- MOIA spends about 68% of its budget on immigration legal services and related support services
- For FY25, MOIA has allocated over $17 million for legal services programs
- OASO received about $60 million from the state for the asylum application help center and clinics
- For FY25, OASO received $47.5 million through the state for the Asylum Application Help Center (AHC)
Alexa Avilés
2:43:32
Got it.
2:43:33
So I guess this is.
2:44:05
Okay.
2:44:06
Sorry about that.
2:44:06
So I guess for for each of you on legal services, can you can you each talk, speak to the current total investment on immigration legal services?
Manuel Castro
2:44:23
Within my office, in our purview, we spent about 68% of our budget in immigration legal services and the support services attached to those.
2:44:35
Deputy Commission, do you want to add to that?
Jasniya Sanchez
2:44:38
Specifically for FY '25, for legal services under Moya, we have allocated a little over $17,000,000 that goes directly to legal services programs.
Molly Schaefer
2:44:57
We received about 60,000,000 from the state specifically for the asylum application help center in the clinics.
Alexa Avilés
2:45:06
Is that for just fiscal twenty five?
Molly Schaefer
2:45:09
Let me get back to you on that exact fiscal twenty five, but as folks know, the twenty twenty five, twenty six governor's executive budget did not include additional funds for asylum seeker aid and that included AHC.
Alexa Avilés
2:45:23
Or have you been advocating for specific funding level?
Molly Schaefer
2:45:27
Of course.
2:45:28
We've worked with our state partners.
Alexa Avilés
2:45:30
Don't say of course.
2:45:31
We have just been through this for hours of we're in ongoing conversation.
Molly Schaefer
2:45:36
I think we we as the the administration in general has been advocating to the state for more money
Alexa Avilés
2:45:42
especially when it's How much money are you asking for?
Molly Schaefer
2:45:46
Well, so at this point based on the current on the current budget proposal this would open a $1,000,000,000 gap in the city's FY '26 asylum seeker budget if we don't have extra funding from the state.
2:46:04
And that's for everything I will say.
2:46:06
So sorry for FY '25 in particular we got 47,500,000.0 through the state for AHC.
Alexa Avilés
2:46:18
I need you to go back to the statement of $1,000,000,000 gap.
2:46:22
Break that down because I'm not sure what you're
Molly Schaefer
2:46:25
referring So the state committed $3,100,000,000 in direct assistance to New York City for asylum seekers costs.
2:46:32
They were reflected in our city budget across FY '23 to FY '25.
2:46:38
The twenty twenty five-twenty six governor's executive budget did not include any additional funds for asylum seeker aid to New York City in the city's FY '26.
Uliana Danilova
2:46:48
Got it.
Molly Schaefer
2:46:49
This would open a $1,000,000,000 gap in what we're currently in the city's FY '26 asylum seeker budget.
2:46:56
We're continuing to work with them to try to get that money, but I defer to OMB on
Alexa Avilés
2:47:02
Yeah, OMB said we spent $7,100,000,000 but the state actually gave us $3,100,000,000 so we've actually spent $4,000,000,000 committed.
Molly Schaefer
2:47:13
That's not the same as actually being allocated.
2:47:16
Committing is not the same as
Alexa Avilés
2:47:17
So we haven't drawn down any of that.
Molly Schaefer
2:47:19
Don't know exactly how many.
2:47:21
You'd have to go to OMB, but that's Committing
Alexa Avilés
2:47:22
is
Molly Schaefer
2:47:23
not the same as getting reimbursement for it.
Alexa Avilés
2:47:26
Yes.
2:47:26
Submitting submitting your reimbursements on time.
2:47:31
Nonprofit providers are still struggling to get their money too.
2:47:36
In terms of the is there a plan to expand legal services for either the application support center or the deportation defense?
2:47:50
We talked a little bit about that earlier.
Manuel Castro
2:47:53
I'm sorry.
2:47:54
The question is, is there a plan to increase legal services?
Alexa Avilés
2:47:57
To expand.
2:47:57
Yes.
Manuel Castro
2:47:58
To expand.
2:47:59
Like I said earlier, you know, we are in conversation with OMB and, you know, as as director Schaeffer stated, this all depends on the available funding that we have both from the city and the state, and and we'll determine how to expand if if that's the case.