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Council presses HRA on ABOD rollout, outreach and volunteer pathways as March compliance begins
Summary
Committee members pressed HRA on implementation of new able‑bodied adults without dependents (ABOD) work rules, language access, and volunteer pathways; HRA described PACE referrals, community outreach, and a CBO volunteer program but acknowledged lingering confusion and the risk of benefit reductions starting in June.
The council’s Committee on General Welfare pressed Human Resources Administration officials for specifics about the rollout of new able‑bodied adults without dependents (ABOD) work requirements and how the agency is communicating with and supporting potentially affected New Yorkers.
“March was the first month of compliance,” Scott French, administrator of the Human Resources Administration, said, explaining that sanctions could begin after three months of noncompliance and that June was the first month benefits could be reduced or closed for some recipients who do not comply.
What HRA is doing: French said HRA has been sending direct client communications (texts, emails, push notifications), conducting community meetings and webinars, and connecting ABOD‑identified recipients to PACE career and employment pathways. He said HRA has created two volunteer pathways for community‑based organizations (a formal referral/attendance reporting track and a low‑touch self‑enrollment track) and that more than 100 CBOs have registered as volunteer partners so far.
Council concerns and community voices: Members and advocates said they were seeing confusion in the community about notices and forms and asked whether outreach materials and portals are available in local languages. HRA responded that communications are being provided in local languages and agreed to confirm specifics and follow up. Legal aid and advocacy groups urged HRA to prioritize screening for exemptions, to create an ABOD ombuds pathway for rescreening and questions, and to ensure CBOs supporting volunteer placements have funding or administrative support to manage volunteers.
Operational questions: Council members requested data on how many ABOD‑identified recipients have been reached and how many have complied to date; HRA said it is finalizing data and will provide follow‑up. Officials also said they will refine eligibility screening to reduce worker and client errors and that a pilot AI tool to flag discrepancies in submitted budget data will be piloted prior to live use, with staff training and oversight.
Why this matters: HRA said roughly 122,000 recipients have been identified as ABODs — a subset of the roughly 1.7 million SNAP recipients in the city — and that outreach now is intended to minimize avoidable losses of benefits. Advocates warned that implementation problems and confusion could result in many people losing benefits in June if communication and exemptions are not handled carefully.
Next steps: Council members asked for a written follow‑up with numbers (reach, compliance, languages used), clearer public guidance, and a possible dedicated hearing on HRA’s AI deployment in coordination with the Committee on Technology.
