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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Lauren Schuster, Vice President of Government Affairs at Urban Resource Institute
3:57:52
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105 sec
Lauren Schuster, representing the Urban Resource Institute (URI), testifies about the severe impact of late payments from New York City on their organization. She highlights that URI is currently owed over $20 million from the Department of Social Services, causing significant cash flow issues and forcing them to take out costly lines of credit.
- URI is the largest provider of domestic violence shelter services in the country and a leading provider of transitional housing for homeless families.
- Schuster expresses support for Intros 1247, 1248, and 1249, which aim to accelerate payments and create accountability among agency staff.
- She emphasizes the need for city agencies to have adequate resources, training, and staffing to address the late payment issues.
Lauren Schuster
3:57:52
Good afternoon and thank you.
3:57:54
My name is Lauren Schuster.
3:57:55
I am the vice president of government affairs at Urban Resource Institute.
3:57:59
Thank you chair Juan and to the staff for this very long day and for holding this hearing.
3:58:03
It signals your recognition of the impact that late payments and contracting have on our agencies and the people who we serve.
3:58:10
It also signals continued partnership on this issue for which we are truly grateful.
3:58:14
URI is the largest provider of domestic violence shelter services in the country.
3:58:19
We're also a leading provider of transitional housing to families experiencing homelessness.
3:58:24
Today, we are currently owed more than $20,000,000 from the New York City Department of Social Services.
3:58:29
That means combined, Catherine and and my organization are owed $52,000,000 from the city.
3:58:35
Our funding is our receivables are dated as far back to fiscal year twenty twenty three.
3:58:42
Working closely with DSS, we've made progress and received payment on some of these outstanding invoices.
3:58:48
We're grateful for that, but we need to be made whole to ensure and to ensure that we don't get this backed up again.
3:58:56
Payment delays of this magnitude create significant cash flow issues.
3:59:00
We recently pulled a line of credit that cost us $38,000 in interest.
3:59:05
This is money that we will never get back.
3:59:08
It is money that we will never be able to use to support our residents, our participants, or our staff.
3:59:13
URI supports intro twelve forty seven, 40 eight, and 49.
3:59:18
Taken together, these bills will help accelerate the future payments and create accountability among agency staff.
3:59:24
It's also critical that these agencies have the resources that they need in terms of training and headcount to get this done.
3:59:31
We are grateful for your partnership and look forward to continuing to work together to address these issues.
3:59:36
Thank you.