By Courtney Dentch
About 300 Queens teenagers headed to Albany last week to lobby state legislators to increase funding for the Youth Employment Program.
The program, which placed more than 50,000 city youth in summer jobs in past years, is facing drastic budget cuts, said state Assemblyman William Scarborough (D-St. Albans).
If funding is not increased, the program will only be able to supply 22,000 jobs in New York City this year, he said. To combat this, Scarborough has proposed a bill that would create permanent program funding, he said.
In Queens the program helped find summer jobs for more than 10,000 teens in 1999, Scarborough said. While it is not known exactly how many jobs the borough will lose through the cuts, he estimated the number could be cut in half.
The 300 teens went to Albany March 12 to stress the importance of this program, Scarborough said. They were able to meet with legislators and explain their position.
“They were able to present a coherent case for the need for this program,” he said. “They really put a face on the issue.”
Although the meetings went well, Scarborough said, the next step is to fund the program.
“It’s like mom and apple pie,” he said. “Everyone agrees it’s a good idea, it’s just a matter of getting them to put up the money.”
The program is designed to give teenagers work experience while allowing them to make some money and stay off the street, Scarborough said.
“There’s the potential of these young people with nothing to do getting into trouble and affecting you or I or their neighbors,” he said. “These are youngsters who don’t have great means but are looking for something to do.”
The program was federally funded by the Job Partnership Training Act, which allocated $72 million to fund summer jobs nationwide, according to a release from Scarborough’s office. In 1999 that changed, and summer jobs were funded by the Workforce Investment Act.
The WIA not only cut the funding to $68 million but also required year-round training and counseling. In New York City this change meant that the budget for summer jobs was reduced by half from 1999 to 2000, the release said.
To make up for the loss, the state and the city agreed to pitch in, but funds have been lowered since then, the release said. In the summer of 2000, $22 million went to New York City, and this year Gov. George Pataki proposed a budget of $15 million for the program, Scarborough said.
His bill would not only increase funding for this summer but would also create permanent funding, he said. The bill was passed by the state Assembly on March 11 and will be presented to the state Senate for their vote, he said.
The bill would use surplus funds from the welfare programs to add to this year’s fund and use money from the general tax levy to create a permanent fund, Scarborough said.
But wherever the money comes from this program must be funded, he said.
“Our children are our highest priority,” Scarborough said.
Reach reporter Courtney Dentch by e-mail at Timesledgr@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 138..
