OTDA Tidbits: Grant Increase, New Commissioner
July 1, 2009
Author: Catherine M. Callery (Kate)| Louise M. Tarantino
Two important pieces of information relating to the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA) came out recently. First, Governor David A. Paterson announced an increase to the public assistance grant that took effect July 1, 2009. This is the first grant increase in nearly two decades. The grant will be raised again in each of the next two years, resulting in a cumulative 33 percent increase by July 2011.
As of July 1, the public assistance grant for a family of three is $321 a month, up from $291 a month. As part of the 2009-10 budget, the Governor and the Legislature agreed to increase the grant in each of the next three years, totaling $353 a month in July 2010 and rising to $388 from July 2011 forward. The State will support the counties’ share of the costs of the grant increase for a period of three years.
The second piece of news is that OTDA Commissioner David A. Hansell resigned his position effective June 26, 2009, to become Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Administration for Children and Families, in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is not yet clear who the new OTDA Commissioner will be.
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