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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Coco Culhane, Executive Director of Veteran Advocacy Project, on Veterans Services Challenges and Recommendations
2:08:05
ยท
5 min
Coco Culhane, Executive Director of Veteran Advocacy Project, testified about current and potential challenges in veterans services, emphasizing the need for preparedness in light of uncertain federal funding and policy changes. She highlighted concerns about VA staffing, potential cuts to services, and the importance of local community support for veterans.
- Discussed the impact of changes at the VA and potential federal funding cuts on local veteran services
- Highlighted concerns about the elimination of DEI programs and their impact on discharge upgrades and addressing systemic racism
- Emphasized the need for more VSO counselors to handle benefits claims and appeals, and suggested improvements in coordination between various veteran support programs
Coco Culhane
2:08:05
Hi.
2:08:06
Coco Colhane from the Veteran Advocacy Project.
2:08:08
I'm gonna go off script a bit.
2:08:11
I just wanted to say the the changes at the VA haven't really happened yet, so any shortages that were being referred to are existing problems.
2:08:19
Right?
2:08:19
I mean, laid off 1,900 people and some 1,600 have been reinstated and I don't know how much that's impacting our local facilities but if it, you know, some of it is also that they're coming back to work and there's just chaos, right?
2:08:35
So if that's happening already, imagine if they lay off, you know, 18% of the workforce and it's going to be up to the local community to step in and take care of those veterans and to provide those services.
2:08:52
The other thing on on the federal level is so much of this funding is just up in the air and nobody knows.
2:09:00
Right now, we're waiting to find out.
2:09:02
Like, are we gonna have to, you know, downsize?
2:09:06
And so much of legal services funding is federal and it's a scary time.
2:09:14
So I think that hasn't happened yet.
2:09:16
Everyone's well, that's not true.
2:09:18
Immigration and fair housing.
2:09:21
But I think the point is that we need to be prepared for a crisis in the services in the city because, really, federally funded.
2:09:34
A lot of this work
Robert Holden
2:09:35
Well, we we know they're not expanding Right.
2:09:37
The Veterans Affairs.
2:09:40
And so there has to be an impact down the line.
2:09:44
Right.
2:09:44
Certainly.
2:09:45
And we did was the VA ever operating like it should?
2:09:51
You know, that that's another thing because there has been, you know, horror stories that we're hearing years ago even.
2:09:57
So if they cut the agency even by 10%, there's going to be a ripple effect down the line.
2:10:05
So that's why we need to all of us and, you know, we we need to increase more the not for profit services that is being obviously are being offered to our veterans.
2:10:20
And and thank you again for being on the front line of your work for so long.
2:10:26
But go ahead, if you have some
Coco Culhane
2:10:27
additional Yeah.
2:10:28
Wanted to add a couple more things.
2:10:30
You know, all of the elimination of DEI programs, the elimination you know, the Pentagon took down all of the pages that were about black service members and women, and, you know, there was public outcry and they put most of it back.
2:10:46
But one of the biggest reasons that we see people coming to us for discharge upgrades is systemic racism.
2:10:54
And so if we are, you know, if there was an era where this was being integrated into military service and we were still seeing a huge need, it's kind of scary to think, well, if there's an basically a green light for people to abuse power and is what, you know, I think it looks like for the military right now.
2:11:19
And, you know, the number one tool that we have with discharge upgrades is thing called the CUDA memo and it basically, you know, says that the boards have to consider mental health conditions that that may have or trauma that may have impacted someone's behavior.
2:11:35
And it's just been taken down from from the website.
2:11:39
And so again, it's something that's totally up in the air and could be fine and but the need there is already so huge.
2:11:48
We have a wait list.
2:11:49
We're so grateful for the city and our partnership with DBS because that funding has allowed us to chisel away at the wait list.
2:12:00
And then just wanted to say in terms of benefits, I think there's there's so many VSOs that have downsized and so many VSO offices that have closed.
2:12:11
We used to have something like nine at the right on Houston Street, now Verick.
2:12:16
So funding more counselors to do appeals, applications, whatever it is, I think is vital.
2:12:24
And I think we need to be looking at the data, you know, these numbers can go all over the place and I think we need to have data in order understand the need.
2:12:35
What I saw is that New York is actually right at the national average that there's about twenty nine percent of vets who are service connected.
2:12:42
So whether or not, but regardless, there's always more we can do and there's a huge wait for these VSO And then my my written testimony, includes suggestions and things like coordination between SSVF programs and HRA on one shots and things like that that are not costly and could make a difference in the way that we, as a community, serve veterans.