April 13, 2007
AIDS SSI INVISIBILITY OVERTIME
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Fighting for them – will Spitzer help out?
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It’s more than a hundred days past “Day One” in Albany, but Governor Eliot Spitzer still hasn’t taken steps to reverse a cruel Pataki-era policy that denies federal disability benefits to disabled children in low-income households that receive the HIV/AIDS emergency shelter allowance.
About 1100 low-income families, mostly in New York City, are hit by the policy; most include parents living with HIV/AIDS whose children have severe disabilities.
Families living on survival-level welfare benefits lose approximately $573 per month under the harsh policy. The cost to the State of changing the policy is estimated to be about $4.8 million.
Governor Spitzer’s political and program aides say they’re open to changing the policy, and they’re aiming at discussing it as part of ongoing talks on finishing the budget and this year’s legislative session.
Housing Works and other AIDS, antipoverty and disability groups will continue to meet with legislators and staff to urge legislative leaders to make the issue a priority in continuing high-level discussions in Albany.
The Legislature and Governor Spitzer are expected to negotiate the content of a capital spending bill in the coming days. And there’s also been talk of a general “clean-up” bill to fix (likely numerous) problems hidden in the thousands of pages of hastily-drafted budget bills legislators passed quickly on March 31 and April 1.
Housing Works and many allies will be fighting for the interests of disabled kids and their families – to join the effort, email Charles Long at long2@housingworks.org.