The New York City Department of Social Services will be cutting safety net benefits to the lowest-income residents if they fail to meet work requirements, according to the Gothamist.
The welfare-to-work rules for cash assistance recipients will take effect on July 28, the news agency reported.
In an email that was sent out to organizations that provide services to homeless and low-income residents, the Department of Social Services said state and federal laws led to this decision.
The city paused the requirement that people need to work, go to school or look for jobs to receive cash assistance benefits four years ago because of the pandemic, the news outlet said.
A single adult can receive $183 a month in cash assistance benefits, while a family of three, including dependent children, can receive $389 every month. To keep receiving the benefit, recipients will now have to participate in employment-related activities, like proving they’re searching for jobs or attending work training, the news agency said.
The most recent city statistics show that more than 550,000 New Yorkers received the key cash assistance benefit in May, up from about 400,000 in May 2020.
A spokesperson for the Department of Social Services told the Gothamist that the agency is making it easier to appeal penalties and giving public assistance recipients time to show why they may be exempt from employment-related appointments.
