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Q&A
Council Member Restler questions DSS on immigrant food stamp access and budget allocations
1:40:47
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179 sec
Council Member Lincoln Restler engages in a Q&A session with DSS Commissioner Molly Wasow Park and HRA Administrator Scott French. The discussion covers concerns about legal immigrants' access to food stamps, potential impacts of federal cuts on specific districts, child care voucher utilization, and City FHEPS funding allocation in the budget.
- Restler expresses concern about legal immigrants potentially losing access to food stamps due to proposed federal legislation.
- The commissioner is asked to provide data on the impact of potential cuts to food stamps and Medicaid in specific congressional districts.
- Restler requests monthly updates on child care voucher utilization and advocates for including previously negotiated FHEPS funding in the adopted budget.
Lincoln Restler
1:40:47
I just I I I I'm out of time, but I'm deeply concerned about legal immigrants accessing food stamps as is proposed in the house bill that legal immigrants, folks who are documented immigrants would not have access to food stamps as in their proposals.
1:41:03
I'd love for you to provide estimates on the number of people that could be potentially impacted by that here in New York City considering 40% of our population is foreign born.
1:41:12
I am deeply concerned about how this impacts specific geographies.
1:41:18
Have you done any modeling for congress member Malia Takis' district for how many food stamp recipients are at risk of losing their food stamps, how many Medicaid recipients could be at risk of losing their Medicaid for her district in particular?
Molly Wasow Park
1:41:32
Thank you council member.
1:41:33
I, with respect to the immigration question, don't have that answer with us.
1:41:38
We can take a look at what we can provide.
1:41:40
I will note that SNAP has very stringent rules already that you have to be in the country legally for five years before you're able to access SNAP.
1:41:49
So limited, certainly, and recent immigrant utilization there.
1:41:56
OTDA has put out excellent one pagers on SNAP utilization by congressional district.
1:42:01
Happy to share those you.
Lincoln Restler
1:42:03
Okay, and Medicaid impacts?
Molly Wasow Park
1:42:04
I believe we have a similar documentation on Medicaid as well.
1:42:08
Happy to share all of that with the committee.
1:42:11
As I mentioned in my testimony, we've been really busy working with stakeholders, making sure that people have materials so that we can talk about the impact of these benefit programs by district, by different parts of the state.
1:42:27
I'm a board member of the New York Public Welfare Association, making sure that we're partnering with my Upstate counterparts knowing that they have different access and
Lincoln Restler
1:42:37
I'm out of time, I'm in trouble.
1:42:38
So just briefly, lightning round, I'm grateful for your advocacy.
1:42:43
I think you're speaking up in a bold and clear way, and it's really important, and I wanna thank you for it.
1:42:50
Administrator French, could we seek, like, monthly updates from you on the child care voucher utilization so we understand what we're planning and preparing for?
1:42:58
Is that a reasonable expectation?
Scott French
1:43:00
I can follow-up on what a right time frame would be, but we are tracking it, so we'll follow-up with what.
Lincoln Restler
1:43:05
Okay.
1:43:05
We will and then lastly, I know my colleagues have raised this, but we painstakingly negotiated $215,000,000 in additional FEPS funding in City Of Yes.
1:43:14
It's not in the budget.
1:43:15
Do you support it being included in the adopted budget?
Molly Wasow Park
1:43:19
So the City of FEPS budget has grown very substantially.
1:43:23
We've added hundreds of millions this year.
1:43:28
I'm going to need to circle back with OMB colleagues and others on exactly how things are being added and counted towards different commitments.
1:43:36
But what I will say is we are passionately committed to the Citi Pheps program and support all resources.
Lincoln Restler
1:43:42
We'd love to work with you to get OMB to do the right thing.
1:43:45
Thank you very much, chairs.