On Wednesday, April 30, Senior Policy Associate Caitlyn Passaretti, submitted written testimony to the NYC Council Oversight Hearing on Late Payments to Human Services Providers. On behalf of CCC, the testimony urges the city to execute on time and in full payments for partners who have provided years of programs without being compensated. We must support the human service sector for all New Yorkers to thrive. 

Read the full testimony below.

Testimony of Caitlyn Passaretti
Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York
Submitted to The New York City Council
 Committee on Children and Youth & Committee on Contracts
Oversight Hearing Examining Late Payments to Human Service Providers 
April 30th, 2025

Since 1944, Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York has served as an independent, multi- issue child advocacy organization. CCC does not accept or receive public resources, provide direct services, or represent a sector or workforce; our priority is improving outcomes for children and families through civic engagement, research, and advocacy. We document the facts, engage and mobilize New Yorkers, and advocate for solutions to ensure that every New York child is healthy, housed, educated, and safe.

Thank you Chair Stevens, Chair Won, and members of the Committee on Children and Youth and Committee on Contracts for the opportunity to submit testimony at this hearing regarding late payments to human services providers.

CCC recognizes that community-based organizations play a pivotal role in providing vital services and support to New York families. They address some of the most pressing issues that New Yorkers face, including education, healthcare, housing, and social services. However, CBOs often operate with limited financial resources and must adhere to strict budgets. Late payments for services rendered can place an enormous burden on these organizations, jeopardizing their ability to carry out their mission effectively. We are grateful to see the recent announcement of the $5+ billion in advance payments to address the crisis of late payments. This investment is desperately needed, and we will be vigilant to ensure it is fully implemented.

According to the Comptroller’s report published in February 2025, the percentage of late registered human services contracts rose from 88.5% in FY23 to 90.7% in FY24. In FY24, nearly 40% (1,387 contracts) of human services contracts were registered more than a year late, due to late submissions by agencies.[1] This impedes providers’ ability to support their programs.

We have partners who have not been paid for over two years. This is unacceptable and detrimental to the human services sector. Frequent government contract payment delays put providers at risk of eviction and worsen deficits by forcing organizations to borrow to pay rent and salaries.  Providers oftentimes enter a risky situation where they start work without a registered contract and payment, or delay in starting the contract, which affects the communities dependent on the services of providers. The City’s delays cost providers real money and jeopardize the quality of services by diverting funds away from programs to pay interest on lines of credit.

Child Welfare Providers

Although the City previously cleared the backlog of billions in unpaid contracts and amendments, more funding is needed to support and stabilize the sector

CCC and COFCCA partnered to survey child welfare prevention providers on their experiences with the 2020 ACS Prevention Services Contracts changes. We asked providers about the impact of delayed payments, and they shared a host of concerns ranging from the impact on families, to the effect of delays on operations, credibility and financial risks:

• “Delayed payments can lead to interruptions in service delivery, making it difficult to maintain consistency in family engagement and case management.”
• “[Payment delays] affect the services we provide to our community. Workers might leave others will get bigger case load.”
• “Any delay causes a delay in services that can critically impact a family.”
• “Staff are underpaid and, as a result, are not accepting offers for positions here at the agency. This impacts our ability to open referrals, and we are unable to process a certain number of referrals or serve families as required by the 128 slots we need to fill. Additionally, I, along with other supervisors, don’t receive funding for our weekly group meetings, and this money is coming from our own pockets to help keep staff morale up. They appreciate it and feel valued when we have snacks at meetings.”

These quotes are a testament to the harm families experience as a result of delayed payments. To support families, we must support our providers across sectors – ECE, afterschool, child welfare, housing and more. Late payments are disruptive and cause havoc amongst program delivery and sustainability of services. We thank the City Council for its advocacy on this issue and urge the Council and the Administration to build on recent advance payments to ensure payments are made in full and on time.

Hearing Legislation

We support the following bills:

Int. 1247

As demonstrated, late payments have a direct and harmful impact on the stability of our community-based organizations, and their ability to deliver services t families We are grateful for the Council’s commitment to the sector by requiring the Procurement Policy Board to promulgate rules requiring the immediate disbursement of 80% of a fiscal year’s contract funds for contracts with nonprofits upon registration by the Comptroller.

Int. 1248

The creation of the Department of Contract Services is a crucial step to ensure consistent policies across agencies. Many of the payment issues nonprofit providers face are not just from registration, but also result throughout the span of the contract, made more complex by varied payment practices from agency to agency.

Int. 1249

We support this bill which would assist the transparency of this system by requiring contracting agencies to submit annual reports on contract registration and corrective action plans that analyze the causes of delays, specify improvements to be made, include implementation timelines, and set performance targets.

Thank you for the opportunity to provide testimony

[1] https://comptroller.nyc.gov/newsroom/9-out-10-human-service-contracts-arrive-late-to-comptroller-for-review/