Photo Courtesy of the Trump Campaign
A new analysis of federal funding of NYC programs indicated that crises like record homelessness could worsen under Donald Trump, seen here with President Barack Obama.
By Forum Staff
Cutting off all federal funds would have “a devastating impact” on the City’s budget, according to an initial analysis recently released by Comptroller Scott Stringer to help identify what’s at stake for New Yorkers as President-elect Donald Trump, who said that one of his first acts will be to “cancel all federal funding to Sanctuary Cities,” prepares to take office.
Early findings show that federal aid to NYC accounts for almost one out of every 10 operational dollars that the City spends, Stringer said, and many of those dollars go directly to the most vulnerable of residents.
“What we know with absolute certainty is that any cuts in federal aid to New York will have a devastating impact. We have a record homelessness crisis that will be made much more challenging with any decrease in funding. I urge President-elect Trump to remember that behind every federal line item is a human face – a family in need, a victim of domestic violence, an AIDS patient, a hungry school child,” Stringer said. “We are a City that welcomes immigrants—we don’t turn people away based on where they’re from or what language they speak, and that must not change.”
Some City agencies – and their respective programs and services – depend more heavily on federal aid than others, the comptroller noted, and would therefore be more vulnerable to cuts. A handful of agencies – 11 out of more than 40 mayoral agencies total – account for 59 percent of all City spending but receive 92 percent of all federal grant aid. Those agencies include the Department of Homeless Services and the Administration for Children’s Services, among others. The Police Department budget for Intelligence and Counter-terrorism would also be at risk, Stringer said.
The breakdown shows that the City’s homelessness crisis could worsen, the City could become less safe due to cuts to the NYPD, at-risk children would face cuts to critical programs, and more:
- There are currently more than 39,000 households who benefit from Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers, which are fully funded by the Federal government. If federal funding ended, the City would either have to cover the $482 million line item, or tens of thousands of New Yorkers might be without a home at a time when the City is already facing a record homelessness crisis.
- The NYPD receives 61 percent of its $380 million Intelligence and Counter-terrorism budget from the federal government, providing equipment and training to continue to keep the City safe from terrorism.
- Public Assistance Grants through the Human Resource Administration serve more than 600,000 New Yorkers. Of the $1.5 billion in grants, 38 percent is covered by the Federal government.
- Child Protective Services, delivered by the Administration for Children’s Services, could see almost half of its $247 million budget slashed should federal aid end tomorrow. That would put society’s most vulnerable children at even greater risk of abuse, neglect, and mistreatment.
- The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s HIV/AIDS Prevention and Treatment program – with a more than $194 million budget – is funded almost entirely by the federal government. Eighty-six percent of patients enrolled in Ryan White-funded City programs receive an antiretroviral prescription.
“We are going to do everything possible to protect our most vulnerable,” Stringer pledged.
