New York City provided 720,765 residents cash assistance last year — the most it’s ever awarded in welfare checks in at least a decade.
To handle the surge, a staggering $2.46 billion in federal, state and city funds was budgeted by Mayor Adams this year to provide cash assistance to adults unable to work or pay their bills and for their children. The city previously budgeted $1.99 billion during the fiscal year that ended June 30, and $1.57 billion in fiscal 2022.
The biweekly checks are used for rent, utility costs and purchasing clothing or other necessities.
The number of New Yorkers getting handouts is 17% more than the 614,402 recipients in 2022 during Adams’ first year in office, and 30% more than the 555,311 in 2021 during Bill de Blasio’s final year in office, an examination of city records by The Post shows.
The stunning tally is the highest since at least 2014, when the city’s Department of Social Services began tracking recurring and emergency payments by year.
