Senator Golden: Fingerprinting Must Continue as a Part of Food Stamp Application Process

Strongly Criticizes Council Speaker Quinn’s Efforts to Eliminate Requirement

Brooklyn – State Senator Martin J. Golden (R-C-I, Brooklyn) today has issued a statement strongly criticizing City Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s proposal that seeks to eliminate the fingerprinting requirement for New York City residents applying for food stamps. Senator Golden is urging Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the NYC Human Resources Administration to oppose any such efforts within the City Council.

Senator Marty Golden stated, “For Speaker Quinn to call a practice that has eradicated food stamp fraud ‘unnecessary, costly and punitive’ should sound an alarm for every New York City taxpayer. I can’t stress enough how important it be that the food stamp application process continue to include electronic fingerprinting. We must have every mechanism in place to make sure that those most deserving of public assistance are in fact the ones receiving it, and no one else.”

Golden continued, “New Yorkers have a long and proud tradition of helping those in need. However, every taxpayer deserves to know that they are not being ripped off by criminals who use social services to avoid work. Finger imaging is a clean, efficient way to ensure that the tax dollars are going to families truly in need. This is a program that will provide a helping hand, not just a hand out.”

“For years, the food stamp system was plagued with fraud and abuse, and the City should be commended for their efforts to root out such misbehavior. By lifting the requirement on fingerprinting, we are setting the stage for fraud and abuse to run wild throughout the system and reversing the progress that has been made. If we are to discuss this issue further at this time, the conversation should be about creating even more tools to prevent exploitation of food stamps here in the Big Apple,” concluded Senator Golden.