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	<title>The Wonkster &#187; Social Services</title>
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	<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster</link>
	<description>Gotham Gazette&#039;s blog about New York policy and politics</description>
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		<title>Krueger Sees Good News For Seniors in Cuomo&#039;s Budget</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2012/01/20/krueger-sees-good-news-for-seniors-in-cuomos-budget/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2012/01/20/krueger-sees-good-news-for-seniors-in-cuomos-budget/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 20 Jan 2012 18:05:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>David King</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye on Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[andrew cuomo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Liz Krueger]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10474</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Despite the cutbacks and trimming contained in Gov. Andrew Cuomo&#8217;s budget there are areas where some folks are finding happy surprises. Sen. Liz Krueger is particularly pleased that the Governor&#8217;s budget  maintains Title XX funding for senior centers at its current level and leaves other funding for senior programs untouched.
&#8220;Massive proposals cutting support for New [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Despite the cutbacks and trimming contained in Gov. Andrew Cuomo&#8217;s budget there are areas where some folks are finding happy surprises. Sen. Liz Krueger is particularly pleased that the Governor&#8217;s budget  maintains Title XX funding for senior centers at its current level and leaves other funding for senior programs untouched.</p>
<p>&#8220;Massive proposals cutting support for New York&#8217;s senior centers have become a grim tradition of the budget process in recent years. I applaud Gov. Cuomo for changing that this week. While I am still evaluating the full executive budget proposal, I am thrilled to see Gov. Cuomo&#8217;s plan maintains Title XX funding for senior centers at its current level and preserves a number of other important senior assistance programs,&#8221; said Krueger</p>
<p>&#8220;Despite the difficult economy, we cannot balance New York&#8217;s budget on the backs of the most vulnerable among us. Senior centers are a vital support for the older adults in our communities, and I applaud Gov. Cuomo&#8217;s action on this. Hopefully this marks the end of an ugly, annual tradition of threatening support for seniors.&#8221;</p>
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		<title>Quinn on Fingerprinting for Food Stamps</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2012/01/05/quinn-on-fingerprinting-for-food-stamps/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2012/01/05/quinn-on-fingerprinting-for-food-stamps/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:51:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>David King</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye on Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Governing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[andrew cuomo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christine Quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[food stamps]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mike bloomberg]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10428</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Gov. Andrew Cuomo seemingly went after the city&#8217;s policy of fingerprinting people who want access to food stamps in his State of the State Address. The Bloomberg administration has supported the measure as a way to stop fraud and Bloomberg dismissed Cuomo&#8217;s statement in a press conference following the speech. Council Speaker Christine Quinn just [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Gov. Andrew Cuomo seemingly went after the city&#8217;s policy of fingerprinting people who want access to food stamps <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Albany/20120105/204/3664">in his State of the State Address</a>. The Bloomberg administration has supported the measure as a way to stop fraud and Bloomberg dismissed Cuomo&#8217;s statement in a <a href="http://www.ny1.com/content/news_beats/political_news/153641/bloomberg-snipes-at-cuomo-s-food-stamp-proposal">press conference following the speech</a>. Council Speaker Christine Quinn just weighed in via press release and she is taking Cuomo&#8217;s side.</p>
<p>“In these tough economic times, we need to help New Yorkers get the federal services they qualify for, not put obstacles in their way. Unfortunately, Mayor Bloomberg and I couldn’t disagree more — fingerprinting food stamp applicants is a time consuming and unnecessary process, which stigmatizes applicants and has prevented 24,000 New Yorkers from getting the help they deserve.  The State has the authority to eliminate finger imaging in New York City, and the Mayor should not even think of challenging Governor Cuomo’s decision.”</p>
<p>Cuomo said in his State of the State yesterday that, &#8220;One of the things we do now and makes the stigma actually worse and creates a barrier for families coming forward to get food stamps is we require fingerprinting. I&#8217;m saying stop fingerprinting for families,” said Cuomo.</p>
<p>Bloomberg told reporters, &#8220;“It’s not a stigma, and it may be elsewhere in the state, and maybe that’s what he was referring to, but it’s certainly not a stigma.&#8221;</p>
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		<title>State Does Not Support New Shelter Rules After All</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/11/10/state-does-not-support-new-shelter-rules-afterall/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/11/10/state-does-not-support-new-shelter-rules-afterall/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 10 Nov 2011 16:54:29 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[elizabeth berlin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[homeless]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[office of temporary and disability assistance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[seth diamond]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10319</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[At yesterday&#8217;s acrimonious hearing on changes in the city&#8217;s procedures for admitting single adults to homeless shelters. Council Speaker Christine Quinn pressed Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Seth Diamond over whether the state had –- as Diamond contended &#8212; actually approved the change.
To some in the audience it may have seemed as though Quinn was [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>At yesterday&#8217;s acrimonious <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Social%20Services/20111110/15/3634">hearing</a> on <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/11/04/change-for-the-homeless/">changes in the city&#8217;s procedures</a> for admitting single adults to homeless shelters. Council Speaker Christine Quinn pressed Department of Homeless Services Commissioner <a href=" http://www.nyc.gov/html/dhs/html/press/pr041910.shtml">Seth Diamond</a> over whether the state had –- as Diamond contended &#8212; actually approved the change.</p>
<p>To some in the audience it may have seemed as though Quinn was splitting hairs. Diamond certainly seemed peeved at her approach.</p>
<p>Now, though, it looks as though she was correct. In a letter to Diamond dated yesterday and released this morning by Quinn&#8217;s office, Elizabeth Berlin of the <a href=" http://otda.ny.gov/">Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance</a>, says that any suggestion that her office approved the new eligibility procedure is &#8220;inaccurate.&#8221; </p>
<p>And Berlin went further: </p>
<blockquote><p>Moreover, this office has serious concerns that DHS failed to submit this proposal to the New York Supreme Court for review.  For over 30 years, such a review process has been DHS&#8217;s practice when making a policy change relating to the <a href=" http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/pages/the-callahan-legacy-callahan-v.-carey-and-the-legal-right-to-shelter">Callahan Consent Decree</a>. Given DHS’s failure to share this policy with the court, OTDA finds the Nov.14 implementation date – a mere 10 days after the policy change was announced – to be completely unreasonable and is not supported by the state.</p></blockquote>
<p>The Callahan decree, reached between the city, state and advocates in 1981 provides a right to shelter for adults who qualified for welfare or who are homeless &#8220;by reason of physical, mental or social dysfunction.&#8221;</p>
<p>To read more on the issue and the debate over it, go <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Social%20Services/20111110/15/3634">here</a>. And more on the exchange between Quinn and Diamond  after the jump.</p>
<p>At the hearing yesterday, Diamond told the council that the state had informed his office that the change, which seeks to compel people to find alternatives to shelters including staying with relatives or even leaving the country, is  &#8220;consistent with state rules.&#8221; Quinn countered that that did not mean the state approved it. &#8220;Our understanding from the governor&#8217;s office is that they have not approved it,&#8221; she said.</p>
<p>Diamond responded that the department did not need approval. &#8220;We have the flexibility to implement procedure that are consistent with state laws and regulations,&#8221; Diamond said, adding he believed his office had &#8220;what is needed to allow us to go forward.&#8221;  </p>
<p>Berlin&#8217;s letter explicitly addresses that point. &#8220;OTDA has not commented on the substantive merits of the proposed change, but instead determined that the proposal was not inconsistent with state law,&#8221; her two-paragraph letter said, </p>
<p>We&#8217;ll try to get some reaction and pass it along. </p>
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		<item>
		<title>Change for the Homeless</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/11/04/change-for-the-homeless/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/11/04/change-for-the-homeless/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 04 Nov 2011 19:28:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Housing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[annabel palma]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christine Quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[emergency shelters]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[homeless]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[seth diamond]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[steve banks]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10292</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Advocates for the homeless and some City Council members are reacting with alarm to reports that the city will institute a policy later this month that will make it more difficult for single adults to gain admission to city shelters.
According to WNBC, which first
reported on the move, workers will subject people applying to stay in [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Advocates for the homeless and some City Council members are reacting with alarm to reports that the city will institute a policy later this month that will make it more difficult for single adults to gain admission to city shelters.</p>
<p>According to WNBC, which first<br />
<href =http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Homeless-Shelter-Policy-Change-Temporary-Housing-Requirement-Court-133213703.html>reported on the move, workers will subject people applying to stay in shelters to more questions about where they have lived recently and whether they have another place to stay. This could create a problem for someone who, say, lost her apartment, doubled up with a sister for a  short time and then was asked to leave.</p>
<p>The  move – apparently an effort to save money – has been in the works for a while but needed state approval. City officials told NBC they received the OK yesterday. The city already conducts similar reviews for homeless families.</p>
<p>Department of Homeless Services Commissioner Seth Diamond <a href=http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/04/newyorkcity-homeless-singles-idUSN1E7A30VQ20111104>told</a> Reuters that many people applying to shelters these days may have other options. They include, he said, &#8220;a lot of people who are working or capable of work, who may have gone through a little bit of a rough time &#8212; their employer may have reduced their hours, or they may have lost their jobs.&#8221;</p>
<p>But advocates dispute such arguments. &#8220;The city is playing with fire by implementing this policy, particularly in the winter,&#8221; Steven Banks of the <a href="http://www.legal-aid.org/en/home.aspx">Legal Aid Society</a> told WNBC. &#8220;It&#8217;s certainly going to result in vulnerable New Yorkers ending up on the streets.” He said the society would go to court to try and block the change.</p>
<p>Earlier today, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and General Welfare Committee chair Annabel Palma. Issued a statement condemning the move. &#8220;This policy is cruel, risky, unacceptable and will not reduce homelessness in the city of New York. Denying people shelter because they have found another option for some period of time is punishing people for trying to do the right thing,&#8221; they said.</p>
<p>The council will hold an emergency oversight hearing on the policy at 1 p.m. Wednesday.<br />
</href>
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		<title>Hearings on Helping Veterans</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/10/25/hearings-on-helping-veterans/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/10/25/hearings-on-helping-veterans/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 25 Oct 2011 20:29:37 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>David King</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye on Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work and Labor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[michael bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[veterans]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10233</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The New York State Assembly along with the Senate Puerto Rican Hispanic Task Force will be holding a televised town hall meeting tomorrow in conjunction with Time Warner Cable to discuss issues facing returning veterans. The meeting called, &#8220;New York Cares About Veterans&#8221; will take place from 6 -7:30 p.m..
The discussion, according to the press [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The New York State Assembly along with the Senate Puerto Rican Hispanic Task Force will be holding a televised town hall meeting tomorrow in conjunction with Time Warner Cable to discuss issues facing returning veterans. The meeting called, &#8220;New York Cares About Veterans&#8221; will take place from 6 -7:30 p.m..</p>
<p>The discussion, according to the press release, will include issues like the governments preparedness to provide services to veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome, providing veterans with jobs housing and education opportunities and what kind of help the military offers returning veterans. The Gazette recently <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Health/20111022/9/3624">took a look at the services</a> provided to veterans by Mayor Michael Bloombergs Office of Veterans Affairs. A a number of city council members were shocked by the lack of services provided by OVA. The following press release contains locations where you can attend the state-wide town hall:</p>
<p><span id="more-10233"></span></p>
<p>The New York State Assembly/Senate Puerto Rican/Hispanic Task Force, along with HITN-TV and Time Warner Cable, will be hosting the second statewide Town Hall meeting. The meeting will be held at various locations across the state on Wednesday, October 26th, 2011 from 6:00 pm to7:30 pm. The topic of the statewide Town Hall meeting is: “New York State Cares About Veterans”.</p>
<p>This Town Hall meeting will focus on the concerns that confront our returning veterans and discuss what can be done to help veterans assimilate back into the community after serving on behalf of this nation. Education, Employment Opportunities, Health/Mental Health and Housing, are among the topics of discussion regarding veterans. It is imperative that, as a state, we make sure that our veterans are accounted for in these areas.</p>
<p>The questions that will be addressed in the meeting are:</p>
<p>Soldiers are leaving the battlefield to fight another war at home—a war against economic instability, unemployment and homelessness. They also face a host of health conditions including post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), alcohol and drug abuse, suicide and other medical needs.  According to your experience, what do you think can be done at the policy level to ensure that these brave and noble men and women receive the proper services that they need, and deserve?<br />
There are Federal laws in place to aid veterans who return from war. Are they appropriate and strong enough to ensure that all veterans, including National Guard and reservists, are able to return to society without the loss of jobs, housing, health, and education opportunities? If not, what recommendations can we make to the federal government to secure their stability? What can be done at the state level to close the gap?<br />
Does the military have enough services to address the needs of women serving in the armed forces, both in the job and when they leave service? Is there enough support for families left in the communities when men and women are called to active duty (overseas missions).  How can state and local governments support these families?</p>
<p>The statewide Town Hall meeting will be available for viewing on the Somosnewyork.org website. To review the results from the first town hall meeting on Economic Development please visit our website at Somosnewyork.org</p>
<p>The general public is invited to attend at the various locations.</p>
<p>List locations with addresses and local moderators</p>
<p>Location of Town Hal</p>
<p>Local Moderator</p>
<p>Address</p>
<p>New York- East Harlem Employment Services</p>
<p>TBA</p>
<p>240 E 123st  New York 10035</p>
<p>Bronx- Kingsbridge Heights Community Center</p>
<p>TBA</p>
<p>3101 Kingsbridge Terrace</p>
<p>Bronx, NY 10463</p>
<p>Brooklyn-  Opportunity For A Better Tomorrow</p>
<p>Assemblyman Felix Ortiz</p>
<p>25 Thornton St.  Brooklyn 11206</p>
<p>Long Island- Circulo de la Hispanidad in Hempstead</p>
<p>Assemblyman Phil Ramos</p>
<p>26 West Park Ave, Long Beach New York, 11561</p>
<p>Amsterdam- Centro Civico</p>
<p>TBA</p>
<p>143E. Main St.  Amsterdam 12010</p>
<p>Buffalo-Hispanic United of Buffalo</p>
<p>TBA</p>
<p>254 Virginia St. Buffalo 14201</p>
<p>Rochester-  Ibero American Action Leagues</p>
<p>Minority Leader Brian Kolb</p>
<p>817  East main street Rochester 14605</p>
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		<title>Bloomberg&#039;s Record on Poverty</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/09/22/bloombergs-record-on-poverty/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/09/22/bloombergs-record-on-poverty/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 22 Sep 2011 21:05:27 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Demographics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bloomberg administration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fernando ferrer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[frances fox piven]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[homeless]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[joel berg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mayor Bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[michael bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[New York city poverty]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[poverty initiative]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10145</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[For many months, the Bloomberg administration has boasted that as poverty rose elsewhere in the country, it remained constant here, thanks in part to his policies.
Unfortunately, he can no longer say that. 
New census figures, as reported in the Times this morning, show that poverty rose more rapidly in New York City – by 1.4 [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>For many months, the Bloomberg administration has boasted that as poverty rose elsewhere in the country, it remained constant here, thanks in part to his policies.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, he can no longer say that. </p>
<p>New census figures, as <a href=" http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/22/nyregion/one-in-five-new-york-city-residents-living-in-poverty.html">reported in the Times</a> this morning, show that poverty rose more rapidly in New York City – by 1.4 percentage points &#8212; than in the nation as a whole from 2009 to 2010. This brought the number of people living in poverty in the city to 20.1 percent, the highest level since 2000. Child poverty <a href=" http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903791504576585191483768526.html">rose even more</a> – by 3 percentage points – leaving three out of every 10 city children in homes below the poverty level.</p>
<p>A <a href=" http://www.alignny.org/?p=3008">report by Alliance for a Greater New York</a> said the situation may be even worse than those numbers would indicate because of the high cost of living in New York – a luxury brand, as the mayor has called it. </p>
<p>Incomes across the city fell by 5 percent. But some people continue to do very well. In Manhattan – the county in the country with the biggest income gap – the average earning of the top fifth of the population came to $371,754,</p>
<p>While deploring this high level of poverty, advocates quickly responded that the figures only confirm what they see every day – an increasing level of need in the city. More homeless. Longer lines at soup kitchens and food pantries. People desperate for work.</p>
<p>More reaction and a review of Bloomberg administration poverty policies after the jump.<br />
<span id="more-10145"></span></p>
<p>So far there has been no official response top this from the Bloomberg administration, as far as we know.  (The mayor today though has celebrated the friendship between the city and the French with French President Nicolas Sarkozy and <a href=" http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2011/09/questions-about-deputy-irk-mayor-bloomberg">responded testily</a> to questions about where Deputy Mayor Robert Steel lives.)</p>
<p>Advocates have not been so reticent. Joel Berg of the <a href=" http://www.nyccah.org/">New York City Coalition Against Hunger</a> said the numbers offer the &#8220;latest proof our city and state policies are failing in fundamental ways.”</p>
<p>While saying the figures in and of themselves are not surprising, the <a href=" http://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/">Coalition for the Homeless</a>&#8216; statement said they paint &#8220;a shocking picture of reality.&#8221; </p>
<p>Renewing its call for a so-called <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/work/20100115/22/3147">Living Wage</a> – a move the Bloomberg administration has <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/05/12/living-wage-gets-its-hearing/">rejected</a> – the <a href=" http://www.livingwagenyc.org/">Living Wage NYC</a> coalition blamed the mayor for the rising level of need in the city. </p>
<p>&#8220;The Bloomberg administration&#8217;s economic policy has prioritized the interests of corporations and developers, and neglected the needs of most New Yorkers,&#8221; its statement said in part. &#8220;It has given corporations and developers billions of taxpayer dollars and allowed them to create poverty-wage jobs with impunity. &#8230; This aristocratic agenda of protecting the rich and ignoring the most vulnerable has clearly failed countless New Yorkers across the city.&#8221;</p>
<p>Despite occasional forays into poverty policy the administration has had a spotty record on the issue. The Bloomberg rarely mentioned poverty – political opponent Fernando Ferrer said he never did –during his first term. During his second term he did <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/iotw/20060619/200/1887">launch a poverty initiative</a>, but it never gained the kind of traction and mayoral enthusiasm that has marked his public health campaigns, for example.</p>
<p>In 2009, Bill de Blasio, then running (successfully) for public advocate, <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/socialservices/20091023/15/3063">told Gotham Gazette</a> he &#8220;never felt social services was one of the chief concerns&#8221; of the mayor. While the motivation for the policy initiative, was good, de Blasio said, it &#8220;did not create meaningful&#8221; change.</p>
<p>At that time Frances Fox Piven, an expert on poverty programs who teaches at CUNY, gave Bloomberg credit for not following his predecessor, Rudolph Giuliani, in punishing the poor. But she added, the Bloomberg administration failed to revamp &#8220;the policies that keep the poor poor. Moreover, it has presided over a real estate boom that has steadily encroached on the neighborhoods of poor and working class people, replacing affordable housing with glass towers of multi million-dollar condos.&#8221;</p>
<p>Earlier this year, Gotham Gazette public finance columnist Glenn Pasanen <a href=http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/finance/20110518/8/3529>looked back</a> on the five years since the initiative and concluded,&#8221; it is hard to find any changes in city policy, practice or theory to ameliorate city poverty.&#8221; While pilot program to fight poverty have served only a few thousand of New Yorkers, Pasanen wrote, the mayor&#8217;s budget cuts have affected programs that hundreds of thousands, if not millions of low-income New Yorkers rely on.</p>
<p>Ironically, despite their failure to do much here, Bloomberg has spearheaded an effort to replicate his anti-poverty programs in other cities – and gotten funding to do so. One popular idea involved giving cash to poor people in return for certain behavior – making sure their children go to school, say, or taking them to a doctor. Although these programs show some sign of success in developing countries, Pasanen <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/finance/20110719/8/3568">found little evidence</a> they do any good in the United States as a hole, let alone in New York City.</p>
<p>&#8220;The weak premise that cash-incentive, self-help pilot programs will alleviate poverty in New York City has effectively obscured the real conditions of poverty in the city: unemployment, limited childcare, poor schools and job training, etc.&#8221; Pasanen wrote.</p>
<p>(This summer Gotham Gazette looked at program and policies in a number of areas affecting low income New Yorkers. To see our series – The Tattered Safety Net – go <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/socialservices/20110831/15/3593">here</a>.)</p>
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		<title>A Poorer State</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/09/13/a-poorer-state/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/09/13/a-poorer-state/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 13 Sep 2011 15:58:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Demographics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fiscal policy institute]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[income gap]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city coalition against hunger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[poverty level]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=10078</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[One in six New York state residents &#8212; more than 3 million people &#8212; live in poverty, according to statement by theNew York City Coalition Against Hunger on census figures released this morning. 
The figure 2009-10 represents an 11 percent increase from 2007-2008, the coalition said. The numbers become particularly striking when one considers just [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>One in six New York state residents &#8212; more than 3 million people &#8212; live in poverty, according to statement by the<a href=" http://nyccah.org/ ">New York City Coalition Against Hunger</a> on census figures released this morning. </p>
<p>The figure 2009-10 represents an 11 percent increase from 2007-2008, the coalition said. The numbers become particularly striking when one considers just how low an income a family must have to be seen as living in poverty –- less than $18,310 for a family of three.</p>
<p>In its statement, the coalition anticipated a rise in poverty for New York City alone, although it noted those numbers are not yet available. In 2009, more than one in five New York City residents lived in poverty, with experts <a href=http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/economy/20100927/21/3372> saying</a> the level would have been higher without the federal economic stimulus program.</p>
<p>While critics have warned of increased need in the city – longer lines at food pantries and the like &#8212; the Bloomberg administration has <a href=http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/nyregion/21poverty.html>  maintained</a> that poverty remained relatively constant during the recession and the weak &#8212; if that &#8212; recovery. </p>
<p>&#8220;To a large degree, economic stimulus programs and policy initiatives aimed at bolstering family income succeeded in preventing a rise in poverty in New York City,&#8221; concluded a <a href=" http://nyccah.org/ ">report</a> issued in March by the mayor’s <a href=" http://www.nyc.gov/html/ceo/html/home/home.shtml ">Center for Economic Opportunity</a>.</p>
<p>What no one can deny, though, is that the disparity in wealth in the city has increased. The wealthiest 1 percent of city residents has 44 percent of all income in New York, nearly four times as much as they did just 30 years ago, <a href=http://www.fiscalpolicy.org/FPI_GrowTogetherOrPullFurtherApart_20101213.pdf>according to the Fiscal Policy Institute</a>.</p>
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		<title>Food Stamps for Soda</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/08/19/food-stamps-for-soda/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/08/19/food-stamps-for-soda/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 19 Aug 2011 21:49:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=9996</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[The federal Department of Agriculture has rejected the Bloomberg administration&#8217;s bid to bar New Yorkers from using food stamps to purchase soda sweetened with sugar.
The city made its  request last fall, proposing a two-year test to see how effective a ban might be. The move – part of the administration&#8217;s campaign against obesity &#8212; [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The federal Department of Agriculture has <a href=" http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/08/19/washington-rejects-n-y-c-ban-on-use-of-food-stamps-to-buy-sodas/">rejected</a> the Bloomberg administration&#8217;s bid to bar New Yorkers from using food stamps to purchase soda sweetened with sugar.</p>
<p>The city made its <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/07/nyregion/07stamps.html"> request</a> last fall, proposing a two-year test to see how effective a ban might be. The move – part of the administration&#8217;s campaign against obesity &#8212; came after the state legislature rejected efforts to put a tax on the sugary beverage.</p>
<p>While soda lobbyists, of course, <a href=" http://gothamist.com/2011/04/30/big_soda_not_happy_about_bloombergs.php">objected</a> to the restriction on food stamp use, even many public health experts questioned it from the get-go, fearing that it unfairly singled out people who receive food stamp. The agriculture department always seemed unlikely to approve the ban, and some <a href=" http://gothamist.com/2010/10/08/food_stamp_soda_ban_seems_unlikely.php">questioned</a> whether it even had the authority to do so without congressional approval. </p>
<p>Rather than a ban, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack reportedly said in a letter, the department prefers to promote &#8221; incentive-based solutions that are better suited for the working families, elderly and other low-income individuals&#8221; who get food stamps.</p>
<p>In a statement, Mayor Michael Bloomberg expressed disappointment with the decision. &#8220;We think our innovative pilot would have done more to protect people from the crippling effects of preventable illnesses like diabetes and obesity than anything being proposed anywhere else in this country – and at little or no cost to taxpayers,&#8221; the statement said.</p>
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		<title>Protesting Cuts to Child Care</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/05/11/protesting-cuts-to-child-care/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/05/11/protesting-cuts-to-child-care/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 11 May 2011 20:40:58 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=9519</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Alshawn Rushing wrote this post.
Thousands of daycare workers, parents and children rallied near City Hall today to protest the mayor&#8217;s proposed cuts to childcare and education in the city budget.
&#8220;New York City&#8217;s child care programs are part of the solution  &#8212; affordable professional child care enables women to work, without it many would not [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><b><i>Alshawn Rushing wrote this post.</i></b></p>
<p>Thousands of daycare workers, parents and children rallied near City Hall today to protest the mayor&#8217;s proposed cuts to childcare and education in the city budget.</p>
<p>&#8220;New York City&#8217;s child care programs are part of the solution  &#8212; affordable professional child care enables women to work, without it many would not have that option,&#8221; said Lee Saunders, secretary-treasurer of the <a href=" http://www.afscme.org/">Association of State, County and Municipal Employees</a>. &#8220;We need politicians to make a choice we can be proud of and not take the path of least resistance, balancing the budgets on the backs of children and women.&#8221;</p>
<p>The protest comes days after Mayor Michael Bloomberg <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20110509/203/3522">released his executive budget</a>, which called for layoffs of thousands of teachers and an array of other cuts.  The administration also announced that Bloomberg had decided to save 16,000 of the childcare slots that were originally slated to be eliminated. According to protestors and their political allies, though, the budget only restores $40 million of the original $90 million that has been cut. AFSCME maintains that only 9,000 of the original slots slated to be cut has been restored.</p>
<p>“Child care is an essential job support for low income families,” said AFSCME <a hre=" http://www.dc1707.net/">Council 1707</a> Executive Director Raglan George.  &#8220;As goes childcare so goes the neighborhood.  We are beginning to see some economic recovery; it is not time to limit essential services.&#8221;<br />
<span id="more-9519"></span><br />
<a href=" http://www.uft.org/">United Federation of Teachers</a> President Michael Mulgrew joined protestors in denouncing the budget.  He called on politicians to raise taxes on the wealthy and questioned the fiscal decisions of the mayor. </p>
<p>&#8220;We now have a city where half of households are below the poverty line.  They talk about sacrifice, but the only sacrifice I see is from working families,&#8221; said Mulgrew.  &#8220;Enough is enough!&#8221;</p>
<p>Many advocates have urged the mayor to use reserve funds to help cover the budget gap, but the mayor says he has allocated those funds to cover a $5 billion budget gap in the 2013 budget. Bloomberg also has repeatedly rejected a tax increase.</p>
<p>&#8220;This budget fight is about what kind of city we want to be.  Do we want to be a city that caters to the top 1 percent, or do we want a city where everyone has a seat at the budget table,&#8221; said Manhattan Borough President <a href=" http://www.mbpo.org/index.asp">Scott Stringer</a>.</p>
<p>Councilmember <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/campaigns/whosrunning.php?t=indiv&#038;id=15">Charles Barron</a> of Brooklyn called on the City Council to reject the budget.</p>
<p>&#8220;Vote no for a budget that has library cuts, day care cuts, teachers, firefighter cuts,&#8221; he.  &#8220;We have to deliver a message to Mayor Bloomberg.  If he messes with our children, the next demonstration will be at his house!&#8221;</p>
<p>Barron also lambasted the state and federal government for their budget cuts to childcare services.  He said, &#8220;They have the money, but they are broke.  They [federal government] have a $65 billion surplus, but they&#8217;re broke.  I wish I was that kind of broke.&#8221;</p>
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		<title>Case Management Back on the Chopping Block</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/05/10/case-management-back-on-the-chopping-block/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/05/10/case-management-back-on-the-chopping-block/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 10 May 2011 21:44:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye Opener]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Governing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Measuring UP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[bobbie sackman]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[case management cuts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[department for the aging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mayor Michael Bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[senior centers]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=9489</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Back in March, the city&#8217;s Department for the Aging was prepared to close more than 100 senior centers thanks to a cut in the state budget. 
Those centers were eventually given a reprieve from the State Legislature. 
Some expected senior centers, a frequent target in the Bloomberg administration&#8217;s recent budget cuts, to make it back [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Back in March, the city&#8217;s Department for the Aging was <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/03/03/list-of-senior-centers-to-close-released/">prepared to close more than 100</a> senior centers thanks to a cut in the state budget. </p>
<p>Those centers were eventually given a reprieve from the State Legislature. </p>
<p>Some expected senior centers, a <a href="http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/10/city-selects-fifty-senior-centers-to-close/">frequent target in the Bloomberg administration&#8217;s recent budget cuts</a>, to make it back on the chopping block <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20110509/203/3522">last week.</a> But it was the opposite.  </p>
<p>The city will open about 10 new &#8220;innovative&#8221; senior centers in the next fiscal year, said a spokesperson at the department. Some will be completely new centers, others will be expansions of existing facilities. One of the centers will be exclusively for LGBT elderly. </p>
<p>&#8220;Innovative senior centers will have bigger budgets, have focus on health and wellness and still provide meals, information and referrals,&#8221; said Christopher Miller, a spokesperson for the Department for the Aging. </p>
<p>The news has not quelled opposition from advocates for the elderly, who still say the mayor&#8217;s executive budget proposal hurts senior services. </p>
<p>Bobbie Sackman, the director of public policy at the <a href="http://cscs-ny.org/index.php">Council of Senior Centers and Services</a>, pointed to the largest cut in the department &#8212; a $6.6 million <a href="http://www.cscs-ny.org/advocacy/Case-Management-budget-cut-section.php">decrease for case management services</a>. The same <a href="http://www.ny1.com/Content/news_beats/politics/129192/senior-services-among-items-outlined-in-budget-cuts/">cut was proposed</a> by the Bloomberg adminsitration last year, but the City Council <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20110107/203/3447">reversed it</a>. </p>
<p>This time around the department plans to cut about 30 percent from its case management contracts, which now link 18,000 seniors to services. </p>
<p>&#8220;Some of them are just going to drop through the cracks,&#8221; said Sackman. &#8220;There is only so much you can do when you lose a third of your work force.&#8221;</p>
<p>Sackman and other advocates will rally at City Hall tomorrow to draw attention to the cuts. </p>
<p>With so many other cuts under consideration, including thousands of teacher layoffs, it&#8217;s unclear whether this will become a priority at the City Council. </p>
<p>In response to the criticism, Miller said, &#8220;The Department for the Aging will work with its case management provider agencies to consider alternate ways to restructure the service to minimize the impact on the city’s most fragile and isolated seniors.&#8221; </p>
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		<title>More Support for Senior Centers</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/03/15/more-support-for-senior-centers/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/03/15/more-support-for-senior-centers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 15 Mar 2011 18:12:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Gail Robinson</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[andrew cuomo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[david greenfield]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[gov. cuomo]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Lilliam Barrios-Paoli]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city department for the aging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Robert Jackson]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[rosie mendez]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[senior center]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[title XX]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=9279</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Alshawn Rushing filed this post.
Department For The Aging commissioner Lilliam Barrios-Paoli testified before City Council Monday as the city and advocates continued their efforts to keep the city&#8217;s senior centers open. (For more on the effects of the proposed closings, go  here.)
Paoli, along with seniors and advocates were before the Committee on Aging and [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><i><b>Alshawn Rushing filed this post.</b></i></p>
<p><a href=" http://nyc.gov/html/dfta/html/home/home.shtml ">Department For The Aging</a> commissioner Lilliam Barrios-Paoli testified before City Council Monday as the city and advocates continued their efforts to keep the city&#8217;s senior centers open. (For more on the effects of the proposed closings, go  <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/Social%20Services/20110314/15/3486 ">here</a>.)</p>
<p>Paoli, along with seniors and advocates were before the Committee on Aging and the Subcommittee on Senior Centers, where the focus was on the effect cuts in funding for seniors. The worst cuts are set to come from Gov. Andrew Cuomo&#8217;s proposal to cut  $27 million in Title XX funding. The aging department also faces cuts in city funding, which would affect case management services and food programs.</p>
<p>&#8220;DFTA fully appreciates that the governor and the legislature are facing an unprecedented deficit and need to make painful choices to close the vast budget gap, but the loss of Title XX funding for the department would have a devastating impact on the agency&#8217;s network of services &#8212; an impact that extends far beyond what is appropriate or reasonable for an agency of DFTA&#8217;s size,” said Paoli.<br />
<span id="more-9279"></span><br />
Over the weekend, the state Assembly said its budget would include the Title XX funding.</p>
<p>&#8220;DFTA has received positive feedback from the state legislature, and I am hoping that the $25 million will be restored for DFTA senior centers,&#8221; said Paoli. &#8220;We learned just this weekend that both the Assembly and Senate restored Title XX discretionary funding in their respective budget bills.&#8221;</p>
<p>If the legislature restores the money, it would then still have to negotiate the funding with Cuomo.</p>
<p>Councilmember <a href=" http://council.nyc.gov/d2/html/members/home.shtml ">Rosie Mendez</a> criticized the governor’s decision to cut Title XX funding, and talked about the effects of not having help for seniors in the past.</p>
<p>&#8220;I remember being a little girl in the &#8217;70s, and watching TV, and being horrified by stories of senior citizens buying dog and cat food because they couldn&#8217;t afford regular food.  That&#8217;s why we opened up senior centers,&#8221; she said Mendez.</p>
<p>Members of City Council questioned Cuomo&#8217;s decision to cut spending for seniors, while blocking an extension of the state&#8217;s income tax surcharge on wealthy residents.</p>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;s not going to hurt the rich if they want to buy their girlfriend a gold watch, it&#8217;s not going to hurt the rich if they want to buy a $125,000 car.  I don’t understand the governor&#8217;s position,” said Councilmember <a href=" http://council.nyc.gov/d7/html/members/home.shtml ">Robert Jackson</a>.  According to Jackson, the tax gives the state an additional $5 billion in revenue.</p>
<p>While the City Council has saved senior centers from closing in the past, keeping them open has been problematic.  According to Councilmember <a href=" http://www.gothamgazette.com/city/district/44 ">David Greenfield</a>, 17 senior centers that were slated to close last year and didn&#8217;t have yet to receive funding, and two never reopened.</p>
<p>Several advocates testified at the hearings, calling on the governor to not cut funding to senior centers. Elaine Rockoff, director of community-based programs for the <a href=" http://www.jasa.org/ ">Jewish Association for Services for the Aged</a>, said her organization&#8217;s  centers served 600,000 meals to over 14,000 seniors, and that it s home delivered meal programs served over 600,000 meals to over 3,000 seniors, &#8220;many of them frail and isolated. &#8230; If these funds are not awarded for fiscal year 2012, it is not clear how we will be able to continue providing meals at these same nutritional levels.&#8221;</p>
<p>Rockoff said her clients have written thousands of letters and made hundreds of phone calls to protest the cuts.  </p>
<p>Jane Barry, executive director for the <a href=" http://www.jasa.org/ ">Stein Senior Center</a>, recalled her experiences in 1994 when she ran the first social adult dementia program in the city and funding concerns prompted the closing of two sites. &#8220;I tracked the participants affected by the closure and 50 percent died within 6 months of the closing of the program.  Also, two of our volunteers had a recurrence of their cancer and both died within months of the closing,&#8221; she said.</p>
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		<title>Council Members Give to Crisis Pregnancy Clinic</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/02/22/council-members-give-to-pregnancy-crisis-clinics/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/02/22/council-members-give-to-pregnancy-crisis-clinics/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 22 Feb 2011 23:35:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Civil Rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Governing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[abortion]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Bill de Blasio]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[christne quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[congress]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[council discretionary funding]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[dan halloran]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eric Ulrich]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[jessica lappin]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[planned parenthood]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pregnancy crisis center]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=9143</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[
Funding for one Flushing-based pregnancy crisis center trickled into the City Council&#8217;s discretionary budget last year just before the speaker&#8217;s office drew up legislation to target the pro-life facilities. 
The council is currently considering a controversial bill to force pregnancy crisis clinics to reveal in advertising and in their offices if they do not provide [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/billboard.jpg"><img src="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/billboard.jpg" alt="billboard" title="billboard" width="400" height="335" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-9149" /></a></p>
<p>Funding for one Flushing-based pregnancy crisis center trickled into the City Council&#8217;s discretionary budget last year just before the speaker&#8217;s office drew up <a href="http://legistar.council.nyc.gov/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=777861&#038;GUID=F7F0B7D7-2FE7-456D-A7A7-1633C9880D92&#038;Options=Advanced&#038;Search=">legislation</a> to target the pro-life facilities. </p>
<p>The council is currently considering a <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/health/20110105/9/3444">controversial bill</a> to force pregnancy crisis clinics to reveal in advertising and in their offices if they <a href="http://council.nyc.gov/html/releases/10_12_10_crisis.shtml">do not provide abortions or referrals</a> and do not have licensed medical professionals on staff. There are about <a href="http://www.dnainfo.com/20101117/manhattan/abortion-debate-takes-center-stage-at-city-hall-hearing-on-pregnancy-centers">two dozen centers</a> across the five boroughs. </p>
<p>One of them is <a href="http://www.thebridgetolife.org/about.htm">The Bridge to Life</a> in Queens. Republican <a href="http://councilpedia.org/index.php?title=Recipients_of_Member_Items_(Eric_Ulrich)">Councilmembers Eric Ulrich</a> and <a href="http://councilpedia.org/index.php?title=Recipients_of_Member_Items_(Daniel_Halloran)">Dan Halloran</a> allocated a portion of their member items to the group in June &#8212; <a href="http://council.nyc.gov/html/budget/council-disclosure-fy11.shtml">$3,000 and $3,500 respectively. </a> (Check out our new tool <a href="http://councilpedia.org/index.php?title=Main_Page">Councilpedia</a> for more on the connections between legislation, member items and campaign contributions.)</p>
<p>According to the council&#8217;s member item database, the contributions are &#8220;to fund pregnancy counseling, testing and referrals&#8221; and for &#8220;pregnancy crisis counseling, free pregnancy tests, referrals to post abortion counseling. Referrals to Maternity homes and shelters. Material assistance of clothing, supplies, referrals for sonograms.&#8221; The funding was channeled through individual member items &#8212; not through the <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20100630/203/3301">much larger &#8220;speaker pot.&#8221;<br />
</a></p>
<p>In comparison, <a href="http://www.plannedparenthood.org/">Planned Parenthood</a> of New York City <a href="http://council.nyc.gov/html/releases/10_12_10_crisis.shtml">was allocated</a> $365,000 in council discretionary funds last year.</p>
<p>When The Bridge to Life&#8217;s executive director Marcy Sarosick was asked how the organization counsels pregnant women, she said: &#8220;[We first] ask how far along you are and explain that the fetus is not just a blob of tissues, and it&#8217;s a living human being.&#8221; She said the center would refer women to adoption services. Sarosick opposes the pregnancy crisis bill at the council, calling it &#8220;anti-First Amendment.&#8221;</p>
<p>Supporters of the bill say these <a href="http://www.dnainfo.com/20101117/manhattan/abortion-debate-takes-center-stage-at-city-hall-hearing-on-pregnancy-centers">crisis centers are deceptive and give the perception</a> they perform all medical procedures. Staff have been known to walk around in scrubs although they are not medically trained. </p>
<p>Council Speaker Christine Quinn has been very vocal on the issue. According to insiders, the legislation could be up for a vote as soon as next month.</p>
<p>In an e-mailed statement in response to The Bridge to Life allocations, the speaker&#8217;s spokesperson, Maria Alvarado, said, &#8220;We stand fully behind Council member [Jessica] Lappin&#8217;s legislation. Allocations from individual council members are made at their discretion.&#8221;</p>
<p>When the bill comes to the floor, Ulrich said he won&#8217;t vote for it. </p>
<p>&#8220;I&#8217;ll be a voice on the floor against it when it does come up for a vote,&#8221; Ulrich said today. &#8220;If a young girl is walking into a convent, you think she is being duped?&#8221; One crisis center is run by nuns, Ulrich said.</p>
<p>This bill is one small example of the recently reinvigorated, fierce national debate on abortion clinics and their funding. Just today, the <a href="http://www.thatsabortion.com/">pro-life nonprofit, Life Always</a>, installed a large anti-abortion billboard (pictured above) on Sixth Avenue and Watts Street in Manhattan. The provocative billboard shows a photo of a young black girl, and the message reads: &#8220;The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb.&#8221;<br />
<span id="more-9143"></span><br />
The message relects the claim by <a href="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/02/03/133403770/group-sets-up-planned-parenthood-sting">conservatives that Planned Parenthood targets</a> minority neighborhoods. The billboard is part of a national campaign the group is kicking off today. Cuts are currently pending in Congress that would <a href="http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/22/bloomberg-criticizes-proposed-cut-to-planned-parenthood/?partner=rss&#038;emc=rss">slash hundreds of millions of dollars</a> from Planned Parenthood&#8217;s budget. </p>
<p>In response to the billboard, <a href="http://pubadvocate.nyc.gov/about-bill-de-blasio">Public Advocate Bill de Blasio</a> released the following statement: </p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;This billboard simply doesn’t belong in our city. The ad violates the values of New Yorkers and is grossly offensive to women and communities of color. Women of all backgrounds have a right to reproductive healthcare in New York City, and we must not let the current campaign of attacks undermine New Yorkers’ longstanding support for a woman’s right to choose. A mix of intolerance and bad judgment put this ad up &#8212; common decency demands it be taken down.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
<p>In response to de Blasio&#8217;s statement, Life Always Communications Director Marissa Gabrysch sent over the following: </p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;Since 1973, 13 million African Americans have been aborted in this country. That&#8217;s more than the combined total of deaths among African Americans from HIV, violent crimes, cancer, accident, and heart disease. (compiled CDC data) In 2007, Planned Parenthood made just 4,912 adoption referrals while aborting 305,310 babies &#8211; that&#8217;s 62 abortions for every adoption referral. (Planned Parenthood&#8217;s annual report) In a city as important as this one, with an abortion ratio (41 percent) that is nearly twice the national average, I believe it violates human decency to downplay what is happening.&#8221;</p></blockquote>
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		<title>Crowley Statement on Fire Charges</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/01/14/crowley-statement-on-fire-charges/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/01/14/crowley-statement-on-fire-charges/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 14 Jan 2011 17:15:32 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Eye Opener]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Measuring UP]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[accident charge]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[council spreaker christine quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Elizabeth Crowley]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fdny]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fire department]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sal cassano]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=9011</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We already know Council Speaker Christine Quinn opposes charging drivers for accidents that need emergency services &#8212; a proposal from the Fire Department in response to budget cuts.
But what does Fire and Criminal Justice Services Chair Elizabeth Crowley have to say?
Here is her statement delivered at the Fire Department&#8217;s hearing on the issue today. 
&#8220;Thank [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>We already know Council Speaker Christine Quinn <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703583404576080371603028358.html">opposes</a> charging drivers for accidents that need emergency services &#8212; a <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/2011/01/14/2011-01-14_aaa_calls_crashtax_doubledip.html">proposal</a> from the <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/html/home2.shtml">Fire Department</a> in response to budget cuts.</p>
<p>But what does Fire and Criminal Justice Services Chair Elizabeth Crowley have to say?</p>
<p>Here is her statement delivered at the Fire Department&#8217;s hearing on the issue today. </p>
<blockquote><p>&#8220;Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the proposed rule which would impose a schedule of charges for Fire Department motorist services, which is before you for consideration at today’s hearing.</p>
<p>In the City Council, I Chair the Committee on Fire and Criminal Justice Services, which oversees the New York City Fire Department.  Our first responders not only fight fires and save lives, but also respond to the needs of motorists on the city’s roadway accidents. </p>
<p>One of government’s most important responsibilities is to keep people safe—that is why we allocate taxpayer money to our emergency services.  To raise revenue by charging New Yorkers deemed to be at fault in auto accidents is unreasonable, misguided and a simple case of double-dipping.  New Yorkers already pay for this service by means of taxes on their income and property. The FDNY Commissioner Sal Cassano considers these charges as a “fee” for service but let’s call this “fee” for what it really is: a double tax.</p>
<p>If the FDNY starts charging for emergency response to motorist accidents, what will they charge for next?  Will there be fees for putting out house fires?  We cannot begin to go down this dangerous road; therefore, I respectfully request that you withdraw this proposal from consideration.&#8221; </p></blockquote>
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		<title>Council and Mayor Reach Budget Agreement</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/01/06/council-and-mayor-reach-budget-agreement/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2011/01/06/council-and-mayor-reach-budget-agreement/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 06 Jan 2011 16:26:08 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Community Development]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[acs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[administration for children's services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[firehouses]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fiscal year 2012]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[homeless services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mayor Michael Bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8955</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After nearly two months of negotiations, the City Council and the Bloomberg adminsitration have reached a deal on $585 million in mid-year budget cuts, which will stave off nighttime closures at 20 fire companies and save nearly 200 positions at the Administration for Children&#8217;s Services.

While it&#8217;s good news for some city agencies (the Department for [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>After nearly <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20101119/203/3416">two months of negotiations</a>, the City Council and the Bloomberg adminsitration have reached a deal on $585 million in <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/12/06/council-kicks-off-budget-battle/">mid-year budget cuts,</a> which will stave off nighttime closures at 20 fire companies and save nearly 200 positions at the <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20101222/203/3438">Administration for Children&#8217;s Services.<br />
</a><br />
While it&#8217;s good news for some city agencies (the Department for the Aging and Department of Youth and Community Development included), the council could not save everything &#8212; including <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20101206/203/3424">adult homeless services</a> and a 5.4 percent cut to libraries. </p>
<p>“We recognize the difficult times we face and the council has worked incredibly hard to ensure that any cuts that are made are done in the most thoughtful and responsible manner,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn in a press release. “We worked to secure funding for programs that serve the most vulnerable New Yorkers and to find alternative savings in order to reach a fiscally responsible budget that meets the needs of all New Yorkers.”</p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/omb/downloads/pdf/peg11_10.pdf">agreement</a> only addresses proposed cuts in this fiscal year. In the <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/omb/downloads/pdf/peg11_10.pdf">November plan</a>, next year&#8217;s budget is already set to see a $1 billion cut.</p>
<p>Later this month, Mayor Michael Bloomberg will release his preliminary budget, which is sure to slash spending even more. </p>
<p>Here the full press release from the council:<br />
<span id="more-8955"></span><br />
As a result of extensive negotiations over the past six weeks, City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn and Finance Committee Chair Domenic M. Recchia Jr. today announced that the Council and Administration have reached a budgetary agreement on the Fiscal Year 2011 financial plan. The agreement will achieve the same level of spending reductions proposed by Mayor Bloomberg in the November financial plan, but will restore certain cuts that the Council believed would be particularly harmful.</p>
<p>The Council proposed alternative cuts and sources of savings in order to pay for its proposed restorations. Together, the alternative cuts and identified savings achieve the Council’s goal of reducing spending while preventing cuts to programs that serve New York City’s most vulnerable groups.</p>
<p>“We recognize the difficult times we face and the Council has worked incredibly hard to ensure that any cuts that are made are done in the most thoughtful and responsible manner,” said Speaker Christine C. Quinn. “We worked to secure funding for programs that serve the most vulnerable New Yorkers and to find alternative savings in order to reach a fiscally responsible budget that meets the needs of all New Yorkers.”</p>
<p>“Under the leadership of Speaker Christine Quinn, and thanks to the passionate advocacy of my colleagues in the City Council, I’m proud to say that this deal protects vulnerable New Yorkers from devastating service cuts, while still implementing $585 million in smart, targeted spending reductions for this year,” said Council Member Domenic M. Recchia, Jr., Chair of the Finance Committee. “We have a budget to balance, and we can’t do that without making tough decisions, but the challenge of this economic climate is to tackle our deficit with new ideas and innovative thinking, without harming vulnerable populations.  This deal achieves that goal.  I would like to thank the Bloomberg administration for coming to the table and working with the City Council so we can maintain important protections for our seniors, our children, and for all New Yorkers.”</p>
<p>The Council’s efforts were successful in preventing proposed budget cuts including:</p>
<p> • Fire Companies – proposed nighttime company closures have been deferred in the November Plan but this and other savings options will be further evaluated for FY 2012. The Council recognizes that additional cuts, including to the Fire Department and other uniformed services, may be necessary and will work to ensure that any further cuts have the least possible effect on public safety.</p>
<p>• The Administration for Children’s Services – the Council restored funding for nearly 200 ACS staff positions in the areas of child welfare and child protective services. These workers serve on the frontlines of protecting New York’s vulnerable children.</p>
<p>• Senior Services – case management services will be fully restored. Case management services are a vital resource seniors depend on, the gateway to services that they turn to when they are in need of any assistance from finding food programs and delivery to health benefit programs.</p>
<p>• Youth Programs – runaway and homeless youth programs, serving youth who often have nowhere to turn for help, will be fully restored. Additionally, the number of available slots in other afterschool programs will be preserved.</p>
<p>• Parking Meters – increases to parking meter rates outside of Manhattan and above 86th Street in Manhattan have been deferred.</p>
<p>• Recreation Centers – membership fees will remain at their current rates this year, and will not double as was proposed.</p>
<p> “Case managers link homebound seniors with all city services, including Meals on Wheels, homecare, and food stamps,” said Council Member Jessica Lappin, Chair of the Committee on the Aging. “These workers provide access to the hot meals and help that literally keep frail seniors alive and in their own homes. Without this help, thousands of seniors could end up in nursing homes, hospitals, or worse. I am pleased we were able to restore these funds to the Department for the Aging and protect some of our most vulnerable seniors.”</p>
<p>“The jobs, services, and programs saved under this budgetary agreement will have a direct and positive impact on the welfare of children in the care of the Administration for Children’s  Services  including the most vulnerable and at-risk,” said Council Member Annabel Palma, Chair of the General Welfare Committee.  &#8220;Thanks to the leadership of Speaker Quinn and Council Member Recchia, and the hard work of the finance staff of both the Council and the Administration, we have lessened the impact of some of the more draconian cuts proposed in the mid-year budget.” </p>
<p>&#8220;On behalf of the 3,800 runaway and homeless youth who sleep on our City streets every night, I say thank you. Restoring the cuts to shelter services for these kids, the most vulnerable of the vulnerable, is a huge win for those who care about children. Our ability to restore some measure of the cuts to after-school services reflects the Council&#8217;s priority supporting the care and education of our children and the importance of these programs for our future,&#8221; said Council Member Lewis Fidler, Chair of the Council&#8217;s Youth Services Committee. &#8220;Special thanks to Speaker Quinn, Finance Chairman Recchia and the Council staff for banging out this deal in a fiscally responsible way.&#8221;</p>
<p> “Last year was the busiest in the FDNY&#8217;s history and no matter how bad the budget is, we cannot afford to cut our emergency response services.  I&#8217;m pleased that the Administration has put public safety first by agreeing to keep our fire companies open,” said Council Member Elizabeth Crowley, Chair of the Fire &#038; Criminal Justice Committee.</p>
<p> The Council, fully recognizing the need for budget reductions, identified responsible means of funding the programs and services that were protected. Over the past several weeks, the Council has examined each agency’s spending and proposed alternative cuts or sources of savings in the City budget. After weeks of negotiations between the Council and Administration, the two sides agreed on a package of alternative cuts and identified savings to fund the restored services. Included in the Council’s budget reductions are:</p>
<p> •  $4.5 million reduction in Department of Education contractual services, including IT consultant contracts and professional development services contracts</p>
<p>•  $200,000 reduction in spending on evaluation of Center for Economic Opportunity programs</p>
<p>•  $16 million in underspending; including tuition payments for City students enrolled in upstate community colleges; worker’s compensation payments; and mental health hearings to determine competency to stand trial, among others</p>
<p>•  $4.5 million in additional agency personal services budget savings.</p>
<p>The FY11 Financial Plan was released on November 18th. The Council held hearings on the cuts presented in the plan, totaling 13.5 hours of public testimony and questioning. Negotiations with the Administration continued throughout the following weeks, resulting in the agreement announced today.</p>
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		<title>Council Kicks Off Budget Battle</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/12/06/council-kicks-off-budget-battle/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/12/06/council-kicks-off-budget-battle/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 06 Dec 2010 22:19:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Measuring UP]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8829</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[City Budget Director Mark Page brought his usual good tidings to the City Council this morning (insert sarcasm here), as he urged the body to propose alternative cuts if it wants to save any specific program from his budget ax. 
The warning occurred at the first of several hearings the City Council has scheduled on [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>City Budget Director Mark Page brought his usual good tidings to the City Council this morning (insert sarcasm here), as he urged the body to propose alternative cuts if it wants to save any specific <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20101119/203/3416">program from his budget ax</a>. </p>
<p>The warning occurred at the first of <a href="http://council.nyc.gov/html/calendar/calendar_splash.shtml">several hearings the City Council</a> has scheduled on the <a href="http://www.nyc.gov/html/omb/downloads/pdf/peg11_10.pdf">mayor&#8217;s $1.6 billion proposed mid-year budget cuts</a>. Released last month, the unusual mid-year proposal is an attempt by the Bloomberg adminsitration to minimize an even larger looming budget deficit for the next fiscal year. If these cuts are enacted, the city will still face at least a <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20101206/203/3424">$2.4 billion hole come July</a>. </p>
<p>&#8220;The $2.4 billion gap is obviously considerable in itself,&#8221; said Page. &#8220;Unfortunately, the reality we are facing is likely to be considerably worse.&#8221;</p>
<p>Page was referring to a potential cut from the state, which faces an approximately $10 billion to $12 billion deficit. He estimates the city could see an additional cut of between $2 billion and $3 billion in state aid. </p>
<p>The council has already proposed more than $<a href="http://council.nyc.gov/html/releases/11_18_10_budget_response.shtml">130 million in alternative cuts</a> and identified several areas it would like to see held harmless, including case managers at the Department for the Aging and layoffs at the Administration for Children&#8217;s Services. Nonetheless, Council Speaker Christine Quinn said this morning the council recognizes the city has to cut back.</p>
<p>&#8220;Most of those we support,&#8221; said Quinn of the administration&#8217;s plan. &#8220;I don&#8217;t want that to be lost in the conversation today.&#8221;</p>
<p>&#8220;That said, there are many troubling cuts,&#8221; the speaker added and then rattled off her list, including the nightly closures of certain fire companies. </p>
<p>Council members took aim at the adminsitration over a slew of other slashes &#8212; from cuts to outreach for homeless youth (which we <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20101206/203/3424">cover today</a>) to funding reductions at libraries. Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer, the chair of the Cultural Affairs Committee, said some libraries could reduce service to two or three days a week under the current cut. </p>
<p>And, of course, the conversation turned to politics. </p>
<p>Councilmember Jimmy Oddo, the council&#8217;s minority leader, questioned the administration&#8217;s reasoning for <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20081103/203/2750">extending term limits</a> &#8212; an argument based on its ability to use creative solutions for fiscal problems.<br />
<span id="more-8829"></span><br />
&#8220;We needed this adminsitration because it was uniquely qualified. What in this modification would you argue is unique?&#8221; Oddo asked the budget director to a round of applause. &#8220;Where&#8217;s the payoff for the term limits vote? Where is the radical idea?&#8221; </p>
<p>&#8220;For better or worse, you are getting it now,&#8221; Page responded. &#8220;This administration has achieved a record of order. &#8230; The best you can hope for is there won&#8217;t be too many nasty surprises.&#8221;</p>
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		<title>Cuts Coming Today</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/11/18/cuts-coming-today/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/11/18/cuts-coming-today/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 18 Nov 2010 15:46:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crime & Safety]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Education]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye Opener]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Governing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Measuring UP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Parks]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[budget cuts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[fire companies]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[layoffs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mayor Michael Bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[new york city]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8729</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Brace yourselves. 
The adminsitration is set to reveal those cuts Mayor Michael Bloomberg ordered at the end of September &#8212; which equates to the ninth round of budget cuts within the last three fiscal years. (But who&#8217;s counting?)
We hear they won&#8217;t be pretty. The nightly closure of fire companies are on the chopping block in [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Brace yourselves. </p>
<p>The adminsitration is set to reveal those cuts Mayor Michael Bloomberg ordered at the end of September &#8212; which equates to the <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/dailypolitics/2010/09/nyc-budget-update-were-still-b.html">ninth round of budget cuts</a> within the last three fiscal years. (But who&#8217;s counting?)</p>
<p>We hear they won&#8217;t be pretty. The nightly closure of <a href="http://www.ny1.com/content/top_stories/129152/bloomberg-set-to-announce-thousands-of-layoffs">fire companies are on the chopping block</a> in addition to <a href="http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=news/politics&#038;id=7796039">thousands of jobs across city agencies</a>. In total, the mayor is looking to lose $1.5 billion from the budget over the next two fiscal years. In September, the city ordered uniformed forces and education to expect 2.7 percent cuts, while all other agencies were urged to prepare for 5.4 percent cuts.</p>
<p>Even before we know the details, there is a backlash. </p>
<p>Earlier this week, Lillian Roberts, the executive director of <a href="http://www.dc37.net/">DC37</a>, the city&#8217;s largest municipal employees union, sent the mayor a letter, urging him to consider revenue generating proposals instead of just cuts. </p>
<p>The letter is below. </p>
<p>Stay tuned. </p>
<p><a title="View PDFsss on Scribd" href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/43151353/PDFsss" style="margin: 12px auto 6px auto; font-family: Helvetica,Arial,Sans-serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 14px; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; -x-system-font: none; display: block; text-decoration: underline;">PDFsss</a> <object id="doc_439740706584426" name="doc_439740706584426" height="600" width="100%" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" data="http://d1.scribdassets.com/ScribdViewer.swf" style="outline:none;" ><param name="movie" value="http://d1.scribdassets.com/ScribdViewer.swf"></param><param name="wmode" value="opaque"></param><param name="bgcolor" value="#ffffff"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"></param><param name="FlashVars" value="document_id=43151353&#038;access_key=key-1g15lbmvkx3s573t8ppe&#038;page=1&#038;viewMode=list"><embed id="doc_439740706584426" name="doc_439740706584426" src="http://d1.scribdassets.com/ScribdViewer.swf?document_id=43151353&#038;access_key=key-1g15lbmvkx3s573t8ppe&#038;page=1&#038;viewMode=list" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="600" width="100%" wmode="opaque" bgcolor="#ffffff"></embed></param></object></p>
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		<title>Sick Leave Dead?</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/14/sick-leave-dead/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/14/sick-leave-dead/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 14 Oct 2010 16:36:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Albany]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye Opener]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Law]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Measuring UP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Public Finance]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christine Quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mayor Michael Bloomberg]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[partnership for new york city]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sick leave]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8522</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Council Speaker Christine Quinn will announce this afternoon that she won&#8217;t support the paid sick leave bill languishing in the City Council. 
The bill, sponsored by 35 council members, would force businesses with fewer than 20 employees to provide five days of paid sick leave, while businesses with more than 20 employees would have to [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Council Speaker Christine Quinn will announce this afternoon that she <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/07/sick-leave-movement/">won&#8217;t support</a> the paid sick leave bill <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20100325/203/3225">languishing in the City Council</a>. </p>
<p>The bill, sponsored by 35 council members, would force businesses with fewer than 20 employees to provide five days of paid sick leave, while businesses with more than 20 employees would have to give nine days per employee. Other paid time off can be counted towards the sick time. </p>
<p>The bill was vehemently <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/09/28/dueling-numbers-on-sick-leave/">opposed</a> by the city&#8217;s <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20091116/203/3103">businesses community</a>, including the powerful <a href="http://pfnyc.org/">Partnership for New York City</a> and all five <a href="http://www.ibrooklyn.com/">chambers of commerce. </a></p>
<p>Most of the time, the speaker&#8217;s support, or lack thereof, will <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/iotw/20071001/200/2303">determine of the fate of all legislation</a>. However, the majority of council members who do support the bill have one option. </p>
<p>To bring the bill to the floor, 10 council members must support a &#8220;motion to discharge,&#8221; which would give the full council an opportunity to vote on it. But they also must keep their solid 35-member strong support, otherwise the bill would not survive a mayoral veto. </p>
<p>The motion has only been used once, during the term limit debate. Other times there was <a href="http://www.observer.com/2009/politics/jackson-wont-let-bill-go-quietly">talk of tapping the power</a>, it was quickly quashed. </p>
<p>Mayor Michael Bloomberg recently called the bill &#8220;<a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704696304575538610127018030.html">disastrous</a>.&#8221; </p>
<p>There are all sorts of political calculations and angles to this news today, so stayed tuned for further analysis at Gotham Gazette. </p>
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		<title>Sick Leave Movement</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/07/sick-leave-movement/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/07/sick-leave-movement/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 07 Oct 2010 18:14:04 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Civil Rights]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Eye Opener]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Governing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Health]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Work and Labor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christine Quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sick leave]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8499</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[We got word Council Speaker Christine Quinn is sitting down with supporters and opponents of the sick leave bill today in hopes of potentially finding a compromise. 
Supporters of the proposal, which would require businesses to provide sick days, take the sit-down as a good sign, saying the speaker has expressed willingness to create an [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>We got word Council Speaker Christine Quinn is <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/09/29/quinn-reacts-to-sick-leave-study/">sitting down</a> with supporters and opponents of the <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20100325/203/3225">sick leave bill</a> today in hopes of potentially finding a compromise. </p>
<p>Supporters of the proposal, which would require businesses to provide sick days, take the sit-down as a good sign, saying the speaker has expressed willingness to create an open dialogue and negotiate. </p>
<p>One critic of the bill seemed less optimistic &#8212; saying only to check back in tomorrow. </p>
<p>Just last week, the <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/searchlight/20091116/203/3103">opposing</a> sides released dueling <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/09/28/dueling-numbers-on-sick-leave/">studies</a> on the bill&#8217;s impact. The <a href="http://www.pfnyc.org/reports/2010-Paid-Sick-Leave.pdf">study</a> from the Partnership for New York City put the proposal&#8217;s price tag at $789 million annually, while a <a href="http://drummajorinstitute.org/library/report.php?ID=145">study</a> from the <a href="http://www.drummajorinstitute.org/">Drum Major Institute</a> said it would have no deleterious effect on city business. </p>
<p>After the sit-downs were scheduled, a rally scheduled for this morning by supporters of the bill was abruptly canceled.  </p>
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		<title>Stringer Responds to Quinn... Again</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/05/stringer-responds-to-quinn-again/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/05/stringer-responds-to-quinn-again/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 05 Oct 2010 12:11:22 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Electoral Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Eye Opener]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gotham City]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Measuring UP]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Social Services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[nextNY]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Christine Quinn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[scott stringer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vacancy study]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8481</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, both anticipated candidates for mayor in 2013, are once again clashing over a bill to count vacant buildings and lots stalled at the council. 
After Quinn&#8217;s spokesperson responded to Stringer&#8217;s criticism in the Wonkster late last week, Stringer, once again, sent over a response. 
This [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Council <a href="http://council.nyc.gov/d3/html/members/home.shtml">Speaker Christine Quinn</a> and Manhattan Borough President <a href="http://www.mbpo.org/">Scott Stringer</a>, both anticipated candidates for mayor in 2013, are once again clashing over a <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/09/29/quinn-says-vacancy-study-too-expensive/">bill to count vacant buildings and lots</a> stalled at the council. </p>
<p>After Quinn&#8217;s spokesperson <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/01/quinn-stringer-showdown/">responded</a> to Stringer&#8217;s criticism in the <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/">Wonkster</a> late last week, Stringer, once again, sent over a response. </p>
<p>This is the response to Quinn&#8217;s <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/01/quinn-stringer-showdown/">response</a> to Stringer&#8217;s criticism. Follow me? </p>
<p>From Stringer: </p>
<blockquote><p> Let’s set the record straight: My 2007 report on vacant, under-utilized land in Manhattan produced major policy changes. As a result of these efforts, and with my strong support, Assemblyman Herman D. Farrell and Senator Jose M. Serrano introduced legislation in 2008—which Gov. David Paterson signed into law—removing special tax treatments for vacant residential sites above 110th street. The measure also provided financial incentives for owners who build affordable housing on these sites. In approving this bill, the state legislature took decisive action. But the city council has dropped the ball. With my endorsement, then Council member David Yassky introduced a measure calling for an annual citywide survey of such properties, to see if they could be used as new housing resources for homeless people, as well as hospitals, schools community gardens and the like. Armed with the results, we could fill so many unmet needs in our city. But unfortunately the legislation has languished in the city council without a full hearing or discussion. Then as now, I call upon the council to conduct an annual survey of vacant properties that could be transformed into vibrant new uses and benefit all New Yorkers. </p></blockquote>
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		<title>Quinn, Stringer Showdown?</title>
		<link>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/01/quinn-stringer-showdown/</link>
		<comments>http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/10/01/quinn-stringer-showdown/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 01 Oct 2010 17:35:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Courtney Gross</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[City Hall]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Economy]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[2013]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[City Council]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[manhattan borough president]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mayor]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Picture the Homeless]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[scott stringer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vacant lots]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[vancancy]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/?p=8456</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Yes, both are potential mayoral candidates in 2013. 
It might be a little early for a full-blown rivalry, but Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer definitely disagree on a proposal to survey the city&#8217;s vacant properties stalled at the City Council. The bill, which has 28 sponsors, would create an annual [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Yes, both are potential <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/06/nyregion/06shadow.html">mayoral candidates</a> in <a href="http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/01/manhattans-stealth-fund-raiser/">2013</a>. </p>
<p>It might be a little early for a full-blown rivalry, but <a href="http://www.mbpo.org/">Council Speaker Christine Quinn</a> and <a href="http://www.mbpo.org/">Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer</a> definitely disagree on a <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/09/29/quinn-says-vacancy-study-too-expensive/">proposal to survey the city&#8217;s vacant properties</a> stalled at the City Council. The <a href="http://legistar.council.nyc.gov/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=649884&#038;GUID=4B0F7491-9B25-48B8-BEE9-3183D8943704&#038;Options=Advanced&#038;Search=">bill</a>, which has 28 sponsors, would create an annual accounting of all of the city&#8217;s vacant buildings and lots. </p>
<p>The group pushing the proposal, <a href="http://www.picturethehomeless.org/">Picture the Homeless</a>, hope it would spur the development of those properties as temporary housing for the homeless. Quinn said this week the survey would be &#8220;enormously expensive&#8221; and the money for it would be better used serving the homeless. </p>
<p>In response to our <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2010/09/29/quinn-says-vacancy-study-too-expensive/">reporting</a> on the <a href="http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/housing/20090716/10/2966">issue</a>, Stringer sent over the following statement. </p>
<blockquote><p>I am disappointed that the City Council quashed legislation that would survey vacant buildings throughout the city, in order to identify new sources of temporary housing for the homeless.</p>
<p>In 2007 I released the results of Manhattan&#8217;s first ever survey of vacant properties, finding that there is a significant number of vacancies in the borough representing potential for thousands of new affordable housing units.  Along with the results, I proposed an annual survey of vacant buildings which had been actively backed by Anti-Homeless organizations. Although there is a cost to this idea, its potential long-term value to the city is so obvious. </p>
<p>If a citywide vacant lot count would indeed cost “millions of dollars,” then I believe we should look to more creative options, rather than throw up our hands and pull the plug on this important initiative. </p>
<p>One possible approach to a vacant lot count that keeps costs low would be to utilize volunteers from the Mayor’s NYC Service program.  The City already dispatches volunteers for its annual street homeless count, so this approach would not be without precedent.  And, to be honest, counting vacant lots isn’t rocket science. It would require a minimal amount of training.  Most able bodied New Yorkers interested in enhancing the long-term vitality of their communities could make a positive contribution by participating in a city-wide vacant lot count.  </p>
<p>I call on the City Council to reconsider this decision and let this badly-needed housing program go forward. We cannot afford to be pennywise and pound foolish at a time when the recession has made day to day survival for the homeless tougher than ever.
 </p></blockquote>
<p>In response to Stringer&#8217;s statement, Maria Alvarado, Quinn&#8217;s spokesperson, said the bill at the council would require the survey of vacant buildings, which is &#8220;more complicated&#8221; than just counting empty lots. The council applauds the borough president for his study, Alvarado said, but simultaneously asks what &#8220;clear policy changes&#8221; came out of it? </p>
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