Governor Jindal, Governor Sanford... Mayor Bloomberg?

President Obama's stimulus package is expected to bring billions of dollars into New York City at a time when we desperately need it. Included in this package is a provision that will suspend the limit on how long able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDS) can receive food stamps through September 30, 2010 -- it is a provision designed to address hunger during a time of high unemployment. However, we recently learned that Mayor Bloomberg has refused to accept the provision without conditions, a decision that could cause the city to miss out on millions in federal funds for the local economy.

This is nothing new for Mayor Bloomberg: New York City, as a locality with high unemployment, had previously been eligible for a waiver to extend the time limits, but despite the urging of myself, other elected officials, and hunger advocates -- and even the advice of his own appointees -- the mayor has never accepted the ABAWD waiver.

Mayor Bloomberg refuses to extend federally funded benefits to hungry, out-of-work New Yorkers while they look for jobs, but when it comes to another group of able-bodied adults -- his friends in the financial sector -- he isn't so strict. He has announced that he is willing to spend millions of dollars in city money to retrain and support former financial services workers.

Yet according to a recent Moody's analysis, Food Stamps were found to provide the most bang for the government buck in stimulating the economy. For every dollar the government spends on food stamps, it produces $1.73 in GDP. Clearly, Food Stamps are an essential part of the stimulus. According to an estimate produced by my office -- and referred to in a New York Times editorial last week -- New York City could lose the opportunity to bring roughly $155 million in federal funds into the city because of its refusal to accept this provision without conditions.

This past week, a number of elected officials and advocates have joined with me to take the matter into our own hands. We are urging Governor Paterson to overrule the Mayor by accepting this provision on behalf of the entire state.

For more on this issue, check out my blog, or follow me at twitter.com/pagotbaum

Comments

[techfin]

Bobby Jindal derided stimulus funding for volcano monitoring.
He has never been to Mt St Helens, Mammoth Mountain, Kilauea,or Ranier.
How about they cut some of that hurricane monitoring pork.
Jindalism.

[JimR]

Since you refused to cite Bloomberg's rationale, I had to read it for myself in the article link you gave:

"the Bloomberg administration said on Tuesday that nothing had changed and that it was not obligated to extend benefits to anyone not enrolled in the Work Experience Program, a workfare program that provides temporary jobs, usually in city agencies."

"The program, which currently has about 12,000 participants, teaches job skills, like résumé preparation, and places people in jobs — or, sometimes, internships — with government agencies or the private sector."

This does not sound unreasonable to me.

[BottomLine2008]

OK, so I get that you don't like what Bloomberg's doing, but he must have some reason.

It would be nice if you told us what it is.

[radicalcentrist44]

If you have no dependents and are able to work, you should not get an extension on food stamps. They are still gettting food stamps, they just do not get the extension. Good for Bloomberg.

[laocoon]

yeah let the unemployed starve. it isnt like there are massive layoffs or high unemployment. these people are just malingering.

[BannedFromCommenting]

Yeah, why should they get free food? They can just find a job, there are millions of them in New York.. in fact there COULD be a 0% unemployment rate if these bums just got off their arse!

(Egads, I cannot believe people like radicalcentrist44 walk the planet. Clearly NO sense of reality having never dealt with an unexpected job loss that was out of their control. People cannot be employed at ANY job! Do you have the ability to be a doctor, accountant, lawyer, carpenter, salesman, RN, teacher, translator, any of those at the drop of a hat when you lose YOUR job?)

These people cannot pull a job out of their arse, its not like they are choosing NOT to work. Have you ever been on foodstamps? You cannot just get gov. handouts and sit on your butt not doing anything, unless of course you are a bank.

[larry278]

Betsy Gotbaum has provided information which will give Pres Obama pause if he ever ponders calling Mike Bloomberg to the White House for anything or ever reaches out to Mike. The serious part of an effort to prevent Bloomber from being re-elected as Mayor of NYC is picking up speed & is bringing up issues which could prevent Bloomberg's re-election. This puts some feces into the game that Mike is playing.
I wonder what Mark Green will be doing or saying about Mike Bloomberg's efforts to be re-elected for a 3d time. Mark is a former Public Advocat, has experience in running against Mile & is articulate as evidenced by his blogs in HP & his weekly radio program which features Ms Huffington weekly & other voices for progress.
Anything can & will happen.

[JimR]

What is wrong with requiring people to take part in a jobs program?

[Citizen54]

To all New Yorkers reading this, especially working (or want to be working) people: Tell your friends, tell your neighbors, do NOT give His Highness the Lord Mayor another (third) term. The man looks out for one group (the wealthy), and the rest of us get to pay for a baseball stadium where the mayor's constituents can lounge in luxury boxes.

Thanks to Ms Gottbaum for writing about this issue, which the local press seems to be not covering very well.

No more Bloomberg!

[Ramirez]

This blog would benefit from a brief explanation of why Bloomberg has turned down the federal funds. He has to have some sort of reason other than personal evil or a sudden desire for fiscal conservatism.

[Citizen54]

Does he?

[rabblerousertoo]

You have raised a good point. It appears Bloomberg's reason for withholding food stamps is attributed to his fear that people will try to get over on the government (not look for work) and that applicants should "take make-work jobs to qualify for food assistance." In other words, Bloomberg's philosophy is that poor people should be forced to work, at the very least, for no pay in order to receive public assistance, (see: NYTimes http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/25/opinion/25wed3.html?_r=1&ref=opinion). That's sick and twisted.

It actually makes no sense, really, but when you are rich, apparently it's difficult for one to consider how your decision, no matter how ridiculous or indifferent, affects people that you have had little to no connection with. (see also background info on Bloomberg: http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/reference/timestopics/people/b/michael_r_bloomberg/index.html). If I have not explained this correctly, I look forward to some input!

[reno1190]

youre point is well taken

[JimR]

No pay????? Excuse me, but food stamps are a form of compensation.

[rabblerousertoo]

Oh, by the way, I found a great forum that discusses the Bloomberg issue: http://www.lavidalocavore.org/showDiary.do?diaryId=1114

Hope this does it for you, Ramirez. Cheers!

[Inquisitr]

he lost my vote the day he broke the rules to get himself the chance of a 3rd term, this is just icing.

[Osmona]

WAKE UP NEW YORK CITY. We have got to vote Bloomberg out. I don't care how much money he spends this time to buy his seat, if we don't vote for him he can't win. We need someone in office who knows what its like to be hungry. This guy never missed a meal in his entire life.

BLOOMBERG MUST GO!!!!

Thank you Public Advocate Gotbaum.

[fightorleave2]

I have despised Bloomberg, ever since I saw him. He represents (I'm sorry to say) everything that is wrong with America. I love the way he told NYC that we had to tighten our belts because of a 1.5, or 4.5, billion dollar shortfall, as if he didn't know where the City could come up with the dough. Or, like when he stood haplessly by wondering what he, the Mayor of NYC, could do while Coney Island was being dismantled. Or, now, he tell us that raising taxes on the rich aren't a good idea. I agree. Raising taxes is not enough. There needs to be a reckoning with the wealthy in America, where a good chunk of their change is returned to the public coffers, and we should start with the Billionaire Mayor who is such the philanthropist that he does not even take a salary, but he does spread the wealth among his friends in high places.

[lowgear]

i agree with you.

the rich must be punished. if they have a dollar more than ME, it should be taken away.

the gov't knows how to spend it better than they do.

[Montreaux1991]

AMEN!!!!!

[WorkingClass]

Bloomberg is now my enemy.

[JimR]

At least read the article first...

[VikingQuest]

"Yet according to a recent Moody's analysis, Food Stamps were found to provide the most bang for the government buck in stimulating the economy."

Please, give me a break. If this were true would you also support $700 billion in foodstamps? Never.

[strawberryjulius]

Can you provide proof that food stamps do not provide the most "bang for the government buck"? I willing to bet that Ms.Gotbaum is more knowledgeable on the subject than you are.

The entire city is hurting, and Wall Street is being singled out for special retraining benefits. Bloomberg's favoritism towards the Financial Industry is indefensible. Many of the city's underprivileged residents were just barely scraping by when they did have a job. Now they are on unemployment and their benefits are not paying the bills. More and more people are going hungry in this city and the mayor turns a blind eye.

[laocoon]

if there were that many people in need why not? it both mitigates the worst effect of a depression and stimulates more. the greatest stimulus comes from the bottom as that is immediate and spread through a large number of individuals. $700 billion to steve forbes would not stimulate near as much as the same money for necessaries for 10 million poor. that is simple common sense. try pouring 1000 gal of water through a whole the size of a pin(trickle down) . try pouring it through a whole the size of a water main. which gets the water to the largest area the fastest and which makes it backup? you have consumed a toxic ideology and it has damaged your brain.

[spinmas]

All of the above polititions are rally narrow minded people, it show you who they care about. Its kind up there with former state treasuer Thomas Ravenel being caught with almost 500 grams of powder coacain and basically getting a lap on the wrist. Those people that sanford , jindel and bloomberg are denying servises are the people that make up the all volunteer military and thier famalies..our kids should stop volunteering and makie them re-instate the draft!! let the well healed and wealthy folks kids go die for all the wealthy thier parnts are greedly taking for themselves..stay home , learn a trade or sell some of all those drugs that the USA is letting mexico, aouth america and afganastine send to this country...if the USA had abny sense they would legalize drugs and sell and tax them leaving some money for treatment..they legalize two of the deadliest drugs already , tabbaco and alchol, beleive me I know, I am a n MSW level counselor and recovering person myself. There are tons of kids in school on all levels abusing prescription pills and alcohol and tabbaco. The drug laws grew out of racism anyhow!!!

[gloriousbeing]

Unfortunately, the well-healed and wealthy folks will just buy their kid's way out, or they will be declared ineligible due to a bad knee (Gingrich), Anal cysts (Limbaugh), etc. These people do NOT send their children to die, but feel quite comfortable with middle American families doing so.

[rabblerousertoo]

I live in NYC and I can tell you that Bloomberg is fast falling out of favor with a lot of New Yorkers. Personally, I never liked him nor trusted him and now, all of the chicks are coming home to roost: (1) tax cuts to big businesses; (2) throwing away taxpayer's dollars to Yankee Stadium; (3) breaking the law (as far as I am concerned) by overturning term limits that traditionally New Yorkers voted for or against; and (4) now this, swapping out food stamps for money to train the same people who helped kill Wall Street.

I am always suspicious of rich people who want to become elected officials. Why do it? Certainly not for the pay, so of course it's to acquire even more power. More power to do what? That's the thing that people need to keep their eye on. But as long as Bloomberg has money to throw around, it's more than likely this very rich and confused megalomaniac (he initially was a Democratic, ran for Mayor as a Republican, and recently became an Independent, now shopping to move back to another party), will get reelected back into office, and stories like Ms. Gotbaum, will continue to fall through the cracks.

More about me at RABBLE ROUSER'S FORUM http://rabblerouserforum.blogspot.com/

[JimBozo]

And lets not forget that he wants to fire 15,000 public school faculty, while refusing to raise income tax on the rich. All his new regressive taxes affect the working class and poor much more than the rich.

The man is a monstrous plutocrat, and should be recalled if he insists upon running for a third term.

[Citizen54]

Unfortunately, the spineless governor's budget approach is pretty much the same as Lord Bloomberg's: screw the poor and middle class, but don't discomfort the rich.

Laying off teachers?!?!? Shows how much this mayor and governor care about "the children."

Why not lay off a few deputy mayors? His Lordship has about a dozen of them.

[BarryS]

all or nothing. that's the way to get this done. that's how the fed govt forced the states to adapt auto safrty laws, highway improvements, and many more things. end.

[VikingQuest]

Yeah, so much for state's rights.