70 West 36th Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10018
Phone: (212) 967-0322 Fax: (212) 967-0792 www.unhny.org
For Immediate Release: May 17, 2012
Contact: Annetta Seecharran, Director of Policy and Advocacy (212) 967-0322 x329
Contact: Annetta Seecharran, Director of Policy and Advocacy (212) 967-0322 x329
United Neighborhood Houses Applauds Governor Cuomo's Executive Order Banning Fingerprinting for Nutrition Programs
Nancy Wackstein, Executive Director, United Neighborhood Houses, stated:
"United Neighborhood Houses (UNH) is pleased that the Governor has taken action to make sure hungry families with children have access to food. New York City's practice of fingerprinting applicants to the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), was both demeaning to New Yorkers in their moment of greatest need, as well as out of touch with not only the rest of the state, but the entire nation. With the exception of Arizona, NYC was the only place where families had to take time off from work - a risky proposition for those in low-paying and unstable jobs - in order to submit for fingerprinting as if being booked for a crime.
At a time when one in three New York City children are living in poverty, the real crime has been the bureaucratic hurdle fingerprinting has created for hungry families seeking the federal food assistance they are entitled to. Not only has fingerprinting presented a burden for vulnerable groups include homebound older adults, it has also unfairly added stigma to the application process - causing thousands of eligible New Yorkers not to apply. In fact, the process has wrongfully denied assistance to hundreds of individuals across NYC. In the Empire Center's December report "Time to Leave Fingerprints Behind", it was revealed that over one recent 12-month period, in 97% of Fair Hearings involving fingerprinting, the City wrongfully denied or discontinued food assistance.
UNH recognizes the work of elected City and State leaders including Senator Daniel Squadron and Assembly Member Keith Wright in bringing this issue to the forefront of public consciousness. We strongly applaud Governor Cuomo's leadership to end, in his words, "fingerprinting for food."
"United Neighborhood Houses (UNH) is pleased that the Governor has taken action to make sure hungry families with children have access to food. New York City's practice of fingerprinting applicants to the federally funded Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), was both demeaning to New Yorkers in their moment of greatest need, as well as out of touch with not only the rest of the state, but the entire nation. With the exception of Arizona, NYC was the only place where families had to take time off from work - a risky proposition for those in low-paying and unstable jobs - in order to submit for fingerprinting as if being booked for a crime.
At a time when one in three New York City children are living in poverty, the real crime has been the bureaucratic hurdle fingerprinting has created for hungry families seeking the federal food assistance they are entitled to. Not only has fingerprinting presented a burden for vulnerable groups include homebound older adults, it has also unfairly added stigma to the application process - causing thousands of eligible New Yorkers not to apply. In fact, the process has wrongfully denied assistance to hundreds of individuals across NYC. In the Empire Center's December report "Time to Leave Fingerprints Behind", it was revealed that over one recent 12-month period, in 97% of Fair Hearings involving fingerprinting, the City wrongfully denied or discontinued food assistance.
UNH recognizes the work of elected City and State leaders including Senator Daniel Squadron and Assembly Member Keith Wright in bringing this issue to the forefront of public consciousness. We strongly applaud Governor Cuomo's leadership to end, in his words, "fingerprinting for food."
United Neighborhood Houses (UNH) is the membership organization of New York City settlement houses and community centers. Rooted in the history and values of the settlement house movement, UNH promotes and strengthens the neighborhood-based, multi-service approach to improving the lives of New Yorkers in need and the communities in which they live. UNH's membership comprises one of the largest human service systems in New York City, with 37 agencies working at more than 400 sites to provide high quality services and activities to a half million New Yorkers each year. UNH supports its members through policy development, advocacy, and capacity building activites.
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