BPs demand senior programming
Diaz, other borough presidents urge city to restore funding following cuts
BY JASON COHEN
As cuts were made to senior
programming in the 2021 budget,
elected offi cials took notice
and are demanding action
be taken.
On July 6, all fi ve borough
presidents joined advocates
and senior service providers
in their respective boroughs to
urge the restoration of funding
to the New York City Department
for the Aging (DFTA),
which funds programs in the
city for older adults.
The virtual press conference
was held in response to
the city’s fi scal year 2021 budget
cuts to the agency, some of
which is administered through
the offi ces of the borough presidents.
Prior to the cuts, DFTA
already received a small share
of the city budget, even though
roughly 20 percent of all New
Yorkers are seniors.
The borough presidents,
advocates and providers also
want the city work to establish
a public-private partnership to
fi ll the budgetary gaps to ensure
that seniors do not go without
vital services, especially in
the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic,
which has left them especially
vulnerable.
“Our senior citizens are
already reeling from the effects
of COVID-19 and it is unthinkable
that we would cut
resources benefi ting that population
when they need our
support now more than ever,”
said Borough President Ruben
Diaz Jr. “We need more
funding for senior services,
not less, especially as our aging
population grows and our
social safety nets continue to
be threatened at the federal
level. As the greatest city in
the world and one of the major
economic centers of our
nation, the New York City government
has an obligation to
provide for its most vulnerable
communities. We must restore
this funding and stand with
our seniors.”
DFTA funding supports
programs such as senior center
programming, case management
and elder abuse prevention.
A portion of the funding
allocated to DFTA each year is
discretionary funding for each
of the fi ve borough presidents’
offi ces, which are in turn disbursed
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to senior service providers
within their respective
boroughs. In fi scal year 2020,
the city allocated $1,129,774
for discretionary funding
through the borough presidents’
offi ces. This year, that
funding was cut from the budget
entirely.
According to a recent report
from Center for an Urban
Future, as of March 2019, 1.2
million New York City residents
were over the age of 65
and the aging population has
grown by 237,000 people in the
past decade. Older adults have
proven to be more susceptible
to COVID-19: data from the
New York City Department of
Health and Mental Hygiene
(DOHMH) shows that the vast
majority, or 17,153 individuals
by the most recent count
of confi rmed and probable
deaths from COVID-19 in New
York City, are people ages 65
and older.
On July 6, all fi ve borough presidents, including Ruben Diaz Jr., demanded
the restoration of funding to the New York City Department for the
Aging (DFTA), which funds programs in the city for older adults.
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