Yonkers City Pier Lights Up Waterfront (Photo Credit: Joe PanellaCity of Yonkers)
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano announced the city recently installed new LED lights to the Yonkers City Pier sign along the Hudson River.
The installation of the four two-headed LED lights illuminates the Yonkers sign for the first time in over 15 years.
“The Yonkers sign along our waterfront is iconic and has welcomed visitors to the Hudson Valley for over a century,” said Mayor Spano. “We finally are able to breathe new life into to the pier and brighten the waterfront, which matches the vibrancy of our ongoing downtown revitalization.”
The Yonkers Pier, including its steel sign, was installed on the Yonkers waterfront in 1901.
At that time, Mayor Leslie Sutherland, who was in office from 1898 until 1901, realized the need for the public to have places to go to experience fresh air. The historic pier is the last remaining Victorian-era steel pier on the entire Hudson River.
The Yonkers Pier sign illuminates each night at dusk until dawn the next morning.
Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers will hold its 2020 commencements via the internet Friday
YONKERS, NY — Sarah Lawrence College will celebrate commencement virtually for the first time in its history.
College officials said the 92nd undergraduate ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. Friday and the graduate ceremony will begin at 1 p.m.
More than 300 undergraduates will receive their bachelor of arts degree. The graduate ceremony will confer master of science, master of arts and master of fine arts degrees to more than 125 students.
Graduating students will be invited to experience commencement together with faculty and staff via Zoom.
Tonya Lewis Lee, class of ’88, will be the undergraduate commencement speaker. She is a producer, writer entrepreneur and women’s health advocate, who led to the production of Netflix’s “She’s Gotta Have It” and the film “All Rise.”
Lee is also a bestselling author of children’s books and is the co-author of the bestselling novel “Gotham Diaries.”
The graduate commencement speaker will be Barbara Taylor Bowman, class of ’50.
She is a pioneer in the field of early childhood education and is the co-founder of the Erikson Institute.
Her research which has focused on the importance of early education in childhood development, was the foundation for the federal Head Start program.
Bowman served as a consultant to the U.S. Secretary of Education under the Obama administration.
The public can leave messages of congratulations for undergraduate students and graduate students on Sarah Lawrence’s website.
Ronald J Corti, President and CEO of St John’s Riverside Hospital said, “I’d like to thank Congressman Eliot Engel, not only for his consistent support and advocacy of St. John’s Riverside Hospital. but also for his support and efforts to secure loan forgiveness in the Medicare advance payment program.”
Congressman Eliot L. Engel led the New York House Delegation in a bipartisan letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy urging them to forgive advance Medicare payments in the next stimulus package, which provides financial support to New York hospitals treating coronavirus patients.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act created a program to provide hospitals with up to three months of Medicare payments in advance to help them invest in acquiring medical supplies and expand facilities to treat coronavirus patients. New York hospitals have used these dollars to add beds to intensive care units (ICUs), hire additional health care providers, and purchase personal protective equipment (PPE).
But the federal government is also requiring that hospitals repay these advanced payments with added interest.
These hospitals are in the middle of fighting the coronavirus pandemic and do not have the financial resources to pay back these advance Medicare payments as mandated by the CARES Act.
“Our state’s hospitals and health care workers are fighting day-in and day-out to help New Yorkers infected with coronavirus,” said Rep. Engel. “New York hospitals, especially those in New York 16, have made significant investments to ensure they can provide this lifesaving care. At this critical time, the federal government should not be pulling the rug out from these safety-net facilities by requiring them to pay back the monetary support they’ve received with interest. I will continue work with my New York colleagues to urge Speaker Pelosi and Republican Leader McCarthy to forgive these advanced Medicare payments.”
“The City of Yonkers has had the largest prevalence of COVID-19 cases in Westchester County. The cost of caring for these patients and ensuring the safety of our staff has been exorbitant, both emotionally and financially,” said Ronald J Corti, President and CEO of St John’s Riverside Hospital.
“I’d like to thank Congressman Eliot Engel, not only for his consistent support and advocacy of St. John’s Riverside Hospital but also for his support and efforts to secure loan forgiveness in the Medicare advance payment program. St. John’s was burdened with steep additional costs, including increasing surge capacity by 50%, bringing temporary staff on board, acquiring Personal Protective Equipment and ventilators, and providing crisis intervention counseling. At the same time, most of our outpatient business ceased. This policy is necessary for us to survive financially.”
According to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the federal agency which operates Medicare, New York hospitals have received about $6.5 billion in advance Medicare payments.
The New York delegation letter, led by Congressman Engel, sent a letter to Speaker Pelosi and Republican Leader McCarthy urging that they include provisions in the next stimulus package forgiving these payments so that hospitals have the financial support to continue treating New Yorkers infected with coronavirus.
ONE OF NEW YORK’S BEST: The Charter School of Educational Excellence Among select group of “exemplary public schools that demonstrate that all students can achieve at high levels with the right supports and resources,” Regents Chancellor says
YONKERS PROUD: The Charter School of Educational Excellence (CSEE) serves children in #Yonkers, the Bronx and Westchester County, and already is one of the region’s highest performing tuition-free, public schools.
YONKERS, NY – Now the Charter School of Educational Excellence been recognized by the New York State Board of Regents as a “recognition school” for the sixth straight year. #CSEE is continuing to accept applications from outside Yonkers for the 2020-21 school year.
QUOTE: “These are exemplary public schools that demonstrate that all students can achieve at high levels with the right supports and resources,” Board of Regents Chancellor #BettyRosa said in a news release late last week.
“Recognition Schools help to ensure equity for all children across New York State. The Regents and I are grateful to all of the teachers and administrators who, in concerted effort with their school communities, are guiding our students toward success.”
“Recognition schools are the highest performing and rapidly improving schools across the state,” Interim Commissioner #ShannonTahoe said in the same news release.
“Recognition Schools across the state demonstrate the relentless commitment of teachers, administrators, staff and parents, without whom this growth would not have been possible.”
This is the 6th straight year the Regents have recognized CSEE in this select group. (Note: the designation was changed this year from Reward School to Recognition School.)
The award comes as CSEE continues to deliver strong remote teaching and learning during the COVID-19 shutdown, with average student attendance at 95 percent.
All academic and extracurricular programs are continuing, including CSEE’s unique partnerships with the Giants, Jets, Knicks and the nation’s top orthopedics and sports medicine hospital, the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan.
CSEE has ensured that all students have access to educational technology, including laptops and WiFi.
“We thank the Board of Regents, Chancellor Rosa and Interim Commissioner Tahoe for this honor,” CSEE Board Chair and Founder #EduardoLaGuerre said.
“It’s a tribute to our hard-working teachers, school leaders, coaches, board members and all our staff, and of course to our scholars, their parents and entire families. Everyone in the CSEE family is dedicated to learning, growth and development of the whole child.”
CSEE Superintendent Cindy Lopez, in an email to staff, said: “It is because of you and your dedication and unwavering faith in our work as a team, faith in our students and families that CSEE has once again received recognition from the state as being a highly effective school. I cannot wait for us to be together, back in our buildings so that we may celebrate.”
To be identified as a Recognition School under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, a school must:
● have an accountability status of Good Standing;
● have a Level 4 for the Combined Composite Performance and Growth indicator for elementary and middle schools or a Level 4 for the Combined Composite Performance and Graduation Rate for high schools for the All Students group;
● not have a Level 1 for any accountability indicator (English language arts (ELA) and mathematics progress; Chronic Absenteeism; English language Proficiency; College, Career, and Civic Readiness for High Schools) for the All Students group;
● not have any subgroups that were identified as Potential Targeted Support and Improvement (PTSI) based on 2018-19 school year results; and
● not have a 2018-19 Participation Rate for ELA or Math for the All Students group that is less than 95%. If a school did not have enough students to receive a participation rate, the school is still eligible to be identified as a Recognition School.
CSEE educates some 850 students in grades K-9 and will grow to K-12 in the next three years.
Upon completion of its new, privately funded high school campus, CSEE will be serving approximately 1,150 students.
Parent demand is very high, with some 500 students on CSEE’s waiting list.
#CSEE is one of the highest-performing charter public schools in New York State, outperforming the #WestchesterCounty and statewide averages in every academic category.
Last year, 97% of CSEE 8th graders scored proficient on the ELA assessment and 100% of 8th grade students took the high school level math and science exams.
More than 92% passed the Algebra I Regents and 90% passed the Living Environment Regents, earning credits towards high school graduation.
Only 13 percent of New York’s public schools merited Recognition Award status this year.
Yonkers On-Street Parking Meters Hours Effective 10AM-6PM Until May 15th
YONKERS, NY – May 1, 2020 – Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano today announced the City of Yonkers is amending its parking meter regulations through the duration of New York State’s PAUSE.
Effective Saturday, May 2 through May 15, street parking meter hours will be from 10AM-6PM and alternate side of the street parking regulations will remain suspended.
“We continue to adjust to the effects of COVID-19, which includes addressing the possible hardships parking meters may impose,” said Mayor Spano.
“Shortening the hours of the street meters is a way to provide some relief to our residents without compromising local businesses. As always, I encourage residents who need to park for extended hours to please use the garages or lots.”
The amended parking meter regulations pertain to all city on-street parking meters. On-street parking meter enforcement hours are typically from 9AM to 8PM unless otherwise noted on posted signs.
For more information on Yonkers Parking Authority locations and regulations, visit www.yonkersparkingauthority.com.
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano accepts donation of personal protective equipment from American Chinese United Care Alliance at Yonkers Office for Emergency Management (Photo Credit: Maurice Mercado/City of Yonkers)
Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano today joined St. Joseph’s Medical Center’s President/CEO Michael Spicer and Richmond Children’s Center’s President/CEO Paca Lipovac to accept a donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) provided by the American Chinese United Care (ACUC) Alliance and its membership donors. The donations will be distributed to city organizations, hospitals and healthcare facilities in need of PPE to combat the COVID-19 outbreak.
“Yonkers is blessed to receive these essential PPE donations from our friends at the American Chinese United Care Alliance,” said Mayor Spano. “Times like these remind us that kindness and generosity exists amongst us as we try to navigate through uncertainty. Our local healthcare facilities need these items now more than ever and we are fortunate for ACUC’s ability to lift up those who are working tirelessly on the frontlines for us.”
ACUC today delivered 30,000 masks, bottles of hand sanitizers, gloves, face shields, goggles and protective gowns to the Yonkers Office of Emergency Management. St. Joseph’s Medical Center, located in southwest Yonkers where many COVID-19 cases reside, received 350 protective gowns, 1200 masks, 30 face shields and 30 goggles.
“On behalf of the many dedicated and hard-working health care professionals at Saint Joseph’s Medical Center, I would like to sincerely thank the City of Yonkers and the American Chinese United Care Alliance for their very generous donation of PPE. Our staff is working around the clock on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. These thousands of masks, surgical gowns and hand sanitizers will help protect our staff as they continue to fight this pandemic from the frontline,” said Michael Spicer, President and CEO of Saint Joseph’s Medical Center.
Yonkers’ Richmond Children’s Center, which provides services for developmentally disabled children, also received donated PPE.
President/CEO of Richmond Children’s Center Paca Lipovac commented, “We are grateful to the City of Yonkers and Mayor Spano for their continued support of Richmond Community Services. In these difficult times, it is comforting to know that we have supporters who will assist us in getting necessary supplies. People with developmental disabilities are often overlooked and forgotten, but not in Yonkers. Having appropriate PPEs is essential to protect our staff and residents. People who Richmond supports have significant disabilities and medical fragility. They are a high risk group and protecting them is our highest priority. With this generous donation of PPEs we will be able to continue to provide services to people with disabilities and to keep them safe. Thank you Mayor Spano and ACUC, we greatly appreciate it.”
The ACUC Alliance is a recently-launched grassroots coalition of more than 150 Chinese American and overseas Chinese organizations throughout the Tri-State Area. Members include charitable entities, businesses, alumni associations, other Chinese cultural, religious, and professional groups and individuals, all committed to helping local communities in the fight against this once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. The ACUC has raised more than $5 million in cash or in-hand PPE donations since March.
ACUC Board Member Victoria Alberto said, “We all understand that only by working together, pooling our resources and knowledge can we hope stop and cure this terrible disease. ACUC is committed to you today and in the future as you work to respond and recover from this pandemic.”
Organizations and businesses that contributed to ACUC’s donation include: New York Chinese Coffee Club; Empires Scholars Consulting; Topseat International Inc.; Crag Du Jor Corp; Xiamen University Alumni Association of New York; The Chinese Community of Eastchester, Tuckahoe & Bronxville; Scarsdale residents Hongwei Zhou and Joanna Wang; Phoenix Textile USA Inc.; and Dress Up for the Day.
Other recipients of ACUC’s donation include St. John’s Riverside Hospital and Open Door Medical Center.
SEWING FOR OTHERS—Agueda Zavaleta, is a volunteer teacher for a women’s sewing group at St. Peter and St. Denis parish in Yonkers. She stitches one of the hundreds of protective masks group members have made to help needy Westchester families during the coronavirus pandemic. The project is overseen by Catholic Charities Community Services of Westchester.
At St. Peter and Denis parish in Yonkers, a group of women have been sewing protective masks in their homes for needy families as a way to help protect them from the coronavirus pandemic—a gesture that has been met with gratitude from families receiving the masks and meals at the parish food pantry.
The venture began three weeks ago.
“The women are using their skills and creativity to help in this crisis.
Ms. Hernandez is the day laborer organizer for CCCS Westchester. The 12 women who sew, most of them Hispanic immigrants, are members of a years-long sewing class conducted in the church basement before the crisis safety restrictions began.
The class is headed by Agueda Zavaleta, a volunteer sewing teacher; she and most of the women in the group are wives of day laborers.
Each woman uses her own sewing machine at home, with donated cloth and thread to carry out their good deed via Catholic Charities, which distributes the protective masks to people who are most in need in the Yonkers area.
Catholic Charities organizers said three members of the group were among parish women who made altar cloths used by Pope Francis during Masses he celebrated during his visit to the archdiocese in September 2015.
This is about helping to save lives and they pray for the sick, that they recuperate quickly.
Ms. Marroquin, a married mother of three, noted that in 2015, “we made five tablecloths for the pope; there were about 12 of us.”
She said she learned a lot about sewing back then, later left the group and eventually returned to improve her skills even more.
Her husband, Umberto Lopez, is a day laborer.
Esmeralda Hoscoy, regional director of CCCS Westchester, said that of the several hundred masks that have been made, some have been given to frontline CC volunteer staffers doing community work and working the food pantries at the parish and the nearby CCCS Westchester office—and many masks have been distributed to families who go to the food pantries, by request.
There are also masks that have been sold as a way to raise funds to pay some of the women in the sewing group who are out of work because of the coronavirus crisis.
The sales have been mostly to persons interested in supporting the Catholic Charities mission, in lieu of buying masks at a for-profit business. CCCS Westchester plans to sell some masks to businesses, and to nonprofit organizations.
“These masks are helping to protect and possibly even save lives,” Ms. Hoscoy said. “On Wednesday alone when we distributed food (at the CCCS office), each volunteer was exposed to 300 persons between the two-hour timeframe.”
The parish church is on Ludlow Street; its food pantry is typically open on Tuesdays. The CCCS office is about three blocks away on Hawthorne Avenue; its pantry operates sporadically, mostly on Wednesdays in recent weeks.
“They (the sewing group women) are doing it to help protect others,” Ms. Hoscoy said. “It also keeps them busy. These are women who, like everyone else, are stuck at home. This gives them a goal. This gives them a challenge, and they’re proud of their work.”
Information or to donate material: (888) 744-7900.
All city-sponsored events and Yonkers community events that require a Yonkers Police or Parks Department special event permits are cancelled for the next 10 weeks.
YONKERS, NY – April 22, 2020 – Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano today announced the cancellation of all city sponsored events now through June 30 due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
Cancellations also include community events requiring Yonkers Police or Parks Department special events permits.
“The steps we have taken over the last six weeks need to be extended through June in order to further protect our residents,” said Mayor Spano.
“The decision to cancel events does not come lightly as I know many of these events celebrate our diversity and love for our city and each other. We must remember that our health and well-being must come first in these very uncertain times. I look forward to the time, hopefully in the near future, when we can all resume a normal way of life which includes many of these celebrations.”
Scheduled events canceled through June include all Yonkers Office of Veterans Affairs events, cultural parades and flag raisings and boys and girls clubs sports events.
Organizations that may have already submitted special events permits to the city will be refunded their permit fees.
Residents should contact the Yonkers Parks Department at 914-377-6450 or email Dinorah.Marshall@yonkersny.gov to redeem a special event permit refund.
Last week, a special meeting of the City Council was held to address several urgent issues arising from the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
YONKERS, NY – At a city council meeting, a resolution was introduced by Councilwoman Shanae Williams (D1), cosponsored by City Council President Mike Khader, Majority Leader Corazon Pineda-Isaac (D2), and Councilwoman Tasha Diaz (D3), calling on the New York State Legislature and Governor Andrew Cuomo to open a mobile testing site for COVID-19 in Yonkers. The resolution was unanimously adopted by the Council.
In response to the growing number of cases in Westchester, especially in Yonkers, the municipality with the highest number of confirmed cases at over 3,200 cases, the New York State Department of Health today opened an additional testing site in Yonkers at the St. Johns Riverside Hospital Parkcare Pavilion, located at 2 Park Avenue.
Council President Khader weighed in, saying, “I thank Governor Cuomo for acting quickly to answer the Council’s call for action. I speak for all our residents when I say that this will help, and we are grateful. However, the latest data indicates that in the coming days, this site alone will not be enough. As the fourth largest city in the state, we have many vulnerable residents, like our homeless population and seniors. More testing will not only help to protect them, it will work towards slowing the spread of COVID-19. I look forward to the day when we can say that all our residents have been tested.”
Majority Leader Pineda-Isaac praised the move stating, “The testing site is mobile, so pedestrians and those that usually travel by bus can easily access the site to be tested. This is great news for Yonkers! Yonkers quickly surpassed New Rochelle as the county’s hotspot for COVID-19 cases. It is only fitting that we get a mobile testing site here as well, to contain the spread of the virus among our city’s most vulnerable populations. The 10701 zip code currently has almost 1/3 of the entire city’s COVID-19 cases, so although we’re starting here, the new mobile testing site will eventually be for all of Yonkers.”
Minority Leader Mike Breen (D5) voiced his gratitude, but like other Councilmembers wanted to see more testing in the days to come said “I am appreciative that Governor Cuomo granted the City Council’s request of a testing site, however, I am hopeful he will consider extending the testing to all Yonkers residents.”
The new site will help expedite the testing of residents living in the 10701 zip code, the area with the highest population density in Yonkers. Social distancing may often be harder for residents to practice, making this one the areas hardest hit by the COVID-19 outbreak.
The resolution’s sponsor who represents the lion’s share of this zip code urged her constituents to take advantage of this opportunity. “This mobile testing site is crucial for my constituency. I am both happy and grateful that Governor Cuomo and our State Delegation heard our call and placed a testing site in the 1st Council District in Yonkers” said Councilwoman Williams.
“I plead with my neighbors and constituents to get tested. Knowledge is power. You can protect yourselves and your families by getting tested. Before today, many residents were unable to get tested because they don’t have health insurance. With this mobile testing site testing is free for everyone. I strongly urge all my constituents to take full advantage of this testing site. Call the state health number for COVID19 and schedule an appointment now. The number is 888-364-3065. Remember, getting tested can save your life!”
Councilwoman Diaz also expressed her appreciation at the state’s efforts in helping Yonkers to flatten the curve in Yonkers. “I am glad that Yonkers is getting a new testing site, especially in South Yonkers, because this area has the highest number of cases in the city,” she stated. “As a lifelong Yonkers resident, I always want to ensure that the health, safety, and wellbeing of Yonkers residents is my number one priority.”
Councilman John Rubbo (D4) shared similar sentiments of appreciation alongside the other Councilmembers, while offering a proposal to increase testing throughout the city. “I would like to thank Governor Cuomo for his impeccable leadership during this extremely difficult time in our State’s history. His leadership has been second to none at a time when it is desperately needed both here in New York and more importantly, across our great Nation. The testing site in Yonkers is much needed and is appreciated, but I propose that this site move around our city every 5 to 7 days to serve the entire City of Yonkers. The 10704 and 10705 zip codes have nearly 1,200 positive cases as of 4/16. My District covers a densely populated Bronx River Road apartment building row that should have testing available. It is my hope that this testing will ultimately cover the entire city.”
Councilman Anthony Merante (D6) echoed the sentiments of his fellow Councilmembers stating, “I thank Governor Cuomo for granting the Yonkers City Council its request of a Yonkers testing site. The site is initially open to residents of the 10701 Zip Code as that is the area in the City with the largest number of infected residents. I look forward to testing being opened to the rest of our City as I believe that wide-spread testing is key to stop the spread.”
The site will allow for residents without cars to walk up and be tested. Residents wishing to be tested must call the NYS COVID-19 hotline to make an appointment as the site is open by appointment only. Walk-ins will not be accepted.
The site’s hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
“My employer closed down his business weeks ago. He won’t return my calls. My daughters ask me what we will do, and it breaks my heart because I cannot tell them I don’t know what we will do,” said a Yonkers immigrant worker, Jose Antonio, in a media call on Friday organized by the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, in which workers spoke of losing jobs without getting government relief.
Day laborer and other advocacy groups are calling on New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to provide COVID-19 relief funding for undocumented immigrant workers across the state, pointing to California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s recent announcement that California will designate $125 million in relief funds to its undocumented workers.
“It is critical that New York provide safety net support to all individuals, regardless of federal immigration status,” wrote the the National Day Laborer Organizing Network in a letter delivered to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office on Friday and signed by some 48 organizations that the group said work closely with day laborers and low wage workers in New York, including a sign-on by the New York Civil Liberties Union.
The letter added, “Thousands of immigrants across NY have lost their jobs and have no income to rely on or income support.
Still, tens of thousands more continue to work in frontline work without access to health care or income support, although they are doing the very work that allows many New Yorkers to stay safe at home.”
On Thursday, Andrew Cuomo was asked by media about Newsom’s decision to provide $500 to 150,000 to illegal immigrants in his state that do not receive any assistance under the $2.2 trillion recent stimulus package approved by President Donald Trump and Congress, according to The New York Post.
“We’re looking into it but we have real financial problems,” Cuomo said when pressed, the Post reported, adding that he also said, “The federal government should have a more inclusive policy.”
For the advocacy groups who signed onto the letter delivered to Cuomo, his answers have not been good enough.
The National Day Laborer network said in one of its news releases Friday that Cuomo, in its view, is “deflecting from questions” on the issue, and said that the media call giving personal accounts and stories was another way that immigrant workers could talk about “the impact of coronavirus and demand that Governor Cuomo ensure that undocumented workers have access to sick leave, unemployment insurance, necessary protective gear, and all testing, treatment, and relief.”
In the letter to Cuomo signed by the dozens of groups, they wrote that “the coronavirus pandemic is bringing the dangerous hypocrisy of trumpism into full focus.
The crisis makes clear that undocumented workers – including day laborers, janitors, restaurant workers, healthcare staff, domestic workers, farmworkers, factory and construction workers – are all essential workers.”
The letter continued, “In order to address our current economic crisis and effectively spur demand in our local communities, it is critical that New York provide safety net support to all individuals, regardless of federal immigration status,” and the groups in the letter said that among various options for relief, New York State could:
Create a “Temporary Wage Replacement Program” for workers excluded from unemployment insurance. “This fund should provide income replacement for individuals who have lost wages due to COVID-19 but are excluded from unemployment insurance using a fund of state dollars, or unrestricted federal funds,” said the groups.
Allocate funds to community-based organizations and partner organizations within New York to distribute food, service, and other supports for workers and families
Provide immediate cash relief for those affected by the pandemic through organizations and trusted partners. “This emergency funding, like stimulus funding, should be available quickly, in order to allow community members to stay,” the groups added in the letter.
The network said in a news release that New York State has nearly 750,000 undocumented immigrants, with about 1 in 12 U.S. citizen children in New York living with at least one undocumented family member.
It also claimed that “undocumented workers pay an estimated $1 billion annually in state and local taxes in New York, and yet they are currently left out of federal and state relief programs”—including, according to the letter to Cuomo, federal stimulus payments, state unemployment benefits, federal Disaster Unemployment Assistance (DUA) and most temporary leave and disability payments.
