Orange County Social Services reports rising SNAP caseload, homelessness increases and Medicaid trends in January

Lacey Trimble, Commissioner of Social Services, presented the department’s January monthly report to the Human Services Committee, covering public assistance caseloads, homelessness, Medicaid and child welfare statistics.

Trimble said temporary assistance was provided to 1,512 cases in January, with 56 family assistance cases and 923 safety-net cases. She noted 36 recipients entered employment in January—the highest January number since 2020. SNAP benefits were received by 19,038 cases in January, an increase from the prior year. The department completed an audit of its HEAP (Home Energy Assistance Program) process with state reviewers who gave positive preliminary feedback.

Emergency housing averaged 18 families and 51 singles in shelters in January, while hotels and motels housed 136 families and 169 singles—both increases month-to-month and year-to-year. Project Life averaged about 110.4 families; staff said some units were being refurbished so families who recently moved into independent housing freed up space for new placements.

Trimble reported 836 individuals experiencing homelessness received services in January, an increase of 14 from the prior month and 72 more than January of last year. She referenced a New York State comptroller report that blamed eviction proceedings, lack of affordable units, higher rents and migration from New York City for statewide increases, and she said county additions to the 2025 budget (RSP funds) were a primary driver enabling the county to move more people to permanent housing.

Locally managed Medicaid cases numbered 20,686 in January, accounting for 22,755 individual recipients; both figures were lower than the prior January amid statewide unwinding of certain eligibility categories. Trimble reported modest changes to managed-care enrollments and said additional state data were pending.

In child welfare, there were 299 reports of child abuse and neglect investigated in January, with 176 assigned to traditional response and 23 assigned to Family Assessment Response (FAR). Foster care services placed 74 children at home in January, down from the prior month and down 26 children from January of last year. Adult protective services had 255 active cases in January with 47 new individuals assisted; in-home care involved 332 cases.

Trimble also described the CDPAP (consumer-directed personal assistance program) rollout: she said 275 individuals were impacted by the statewide fiscal-intermediary transition and reported that, "as of yesterday, 235 of our 217 individuals have completed the entire process," a sequence that appears inconsistent on the meeting record and will require departmental reconciliation. Child support served 9,564 cases in January and the unit collected and dispersed more than $3.5 million—$476,000 more than January of last year. The Special Investigations Unit handled 202 FEDS and EDR cases in January with a combined cost avoidance of $437,304 and investigated 54 allegations of fraud and abuse, of which 39 were substantiated.

The monthly report contained a number of positive trends the department highlighted—particularly increases in placements from homelessness to permanent housing—while also noting statewide pressures that have increased local caseloads.

Trimble said she requested a change in how the department reports comparisons in charts so month-to-month and year-to-year trends are clearer, and she provided an extra chart about people moved from homelessness to permanent housing that staff hope to include in future packets.

No formal committee action was required for the monthly report; committee members discussed the figures and asked clarifying questions.