As Congress considers deep cuts to the federal safety net, a growing number of New Yorkers are living in poverty, according to a new report on Wednesday from the anti-poverty group Robin Hood and Columbia University.
A quarter of New York City residents fell below the threshold after the prohibitive cost of living plunged another 100,000 people into poverty in 2023, the most recent year with data available. The local poverty rate was nearly double the national average, while the rate of child poverty reached a record high.
The results of the annual poverty tracker, which estimated the average family needs to make $50,000 just to afford basic necessities, immediately sparked backlash as New Yorkers are squeezed by inflation.
“It’s partially why the threats from D.C. — these radical threats to cut Medicaid, cut food benefits — why that’s so alarming,” Richard Buery, CEO of Robin Hood, told the Daily News. “Because those will further reduce the dollars that people have in their pockets to buy the things they need: diapers for their kids, food for their babies, shelter for their families.
“So we are at a real dangerous moment,” he added.
On Tuesday night, the GOP-led House narrowly passed a budget resolution with $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and $2 trillion in spending cuts. The vote was 217-215, with one Republican lawmaker and all Democrats opposed.
The budget blueprint does not specify which federal programs will be cut. However, on the chopping block is $880 billion over the next decade to the committee that handles Medicaid, and $230 billion to the agriculture committee, which funds the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP. To achieve the former, experts warn there are few areas to cut other than Medicaid.
The plan is not final and must be adopted by the Senate, before both chambers must write and pass legislation.
“While Republicans in Washington vote to slash the social safety net, Gov. Hochul is trying to put $5,000 back into the pockets of New York families,” said Avi Small, a spokesman for the governor, who pointed to an expanded state child tax credit and other budget plans for the next fiscal year, which are estimated to reduce child poverty by roughly 17%.
Addressing the media, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries warned that the budget resolution “will set in motion the largest Medicaid cut in American history.”
Republican Rep. Mike Lawler, in a video posted to X, accused Democrats of “lying” about the impact on Medicaid, explaining that Tuesday’s resolution is just a starting point for the ongoing budget negotiation process.
“I will always stand up against efforts to cut vital programs or take away your benefits, but it’s very clear with $36 trillion in debt and a $7 trillion budget, we have to rein in the size and scope of government,” said Lawler, who is reportedly mulling a New York gubernatorial run.
Contributing to the rise in poverty, the costs of five basic necessities — food, shelter, utilities, clothing and telephone and internet — outpaced wage increases and inflation in 2023, according to the report. The combination pushed the poverty threshold up to $47,190 for a family of four, or 7.5% higher than the year before.
A representative for Mayor Adams said City Hall is reviewing the House budget plan, but noted there were steps before its implementation, while his administration is focused on what it can control to make New York City more affordable.
“Since taking office, Mayor Adams has used every tool in our administration’s toolbox to put money back in the pockets of New Yorkers,” said mayoral spokeswoman Amaris Cockfield, pointing to Adams’ ambitious housing agenda, childcare subsidies and a proposal that would cut income taxes for low-income New Yorkers.
Researchers said the data show that a majority, or 78%, of New York City families with children would benefit from the recommendations of a task force focused on developing a plan to reduce child poverty in New York by half.
The New York State Child Poverty Reduction Advisory Council’s proposals, released in December, include an expansion of the state’s child tax credit and SNAP, statewide housing vouchers and increased monthly public assistance.
Buery, who sits on the task force, praised Hochul’s expanded child tax credit and called for more of the recommendations to be implemented. At the same time, he cautioned there was only so much New York could do if the federal safety net is diminished.
“Whatever investments we make at the state level, if those are also hit by major entrenchment at the federal level, we won’t be able to make the progress that we intend to make,” Buery said. “So, you know, the state can do its job. But if Washington, D.C., can’t do its job, we’re not going to be able to move forward the way we imagine.”
With Josephine Stratman and News Wire Services