By Kelsey Durham
City Councilman Paul Vallone (D-Bayside) is one of three city representatives asking Mayor Bill de Blasio to increase funding for the city Department for the Aging in the 2015 budget.
Vallone, who serves as chairman of the Subcommittee on Senior Centers, joined Councilwomen Margaret Chin (D-Manhattan) and Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst) at a hearing last week to call on the city to provide a larger funding increase for the DFTA.
The agency’s total 2015 budget of $259.7 million includes funding increases for case management, meal reimbursement and new senior centers, but Vallone said other critical areas, such as fighting elder abuse and expanding services for family members, were not addressed.
He said he hopes negotiations during the budgeting process will help restore funding for those needs.
Reach reporter Kelsey Durham at 718-260-4573 or by e-mail at kdurham@cnglocal.com.
