New Haven Independent: CAA Chief Details Raid -- & Responds

CAA Chief Details Raid — & Responds

by Paul Bass | December 14, 2007 2:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (35)

amos%20smith.jpg They burst in with Kevlar suits and guns at their sides. They demanded answers — about heating oil going to undoc- umented immigrants, and about politicians seeking illegal favors.

“It was scary,” Amos Smith said in his office Friday, hours after federal agents finished loading a U-Haul with five years worth of records from the Community Action Agency (CAA). Smith has run the troubled antipoverty agency for the past 16 months, trying to turn it around after more than a decade of scandals and arrests and board fights.

That effort took a hit Thursday as agents from the federal departments of Health and Human Services and Housing and Urban Development burst into CAA’s Whalley Avenue offices. They executed a search warrant, then stayed until 3 or 4 a.m. Friday carting away records. Boxes and boxes of them. (Click here for a story on the raid.)

CAA reopened Friday morning with a temporarily reduced staff. Poor families seeking heating assistance angrily waited hours for service.

Smith made his first detailed public account of the raid, and his side of the accusations involved, in an interview with the Independent. He said the raid would not deter him from efforts to straighten out an historic mess at the region’s largest provider of energy assistance to the poor and meals to seniors. He also said the raid ultimately stemmed from “xenophobia” and disgruntled employees’ hatred of the mayor.

Yelling, Guns Drawn

Around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, at least 10 federal agents burst into the offices as though they were busting an illegal arms hideout, the way Smith told it.

“It was scary initially. This is unlike anything I’ve ever seen,” Smith said.

“They came with Kevlar. Guns at their side. They came in yelling. They had positioned themselves so that everybody could shut the process down all at the same time.” Click on the play arrow to watch him describe it.

Eventually, “after they had control, they realized that whatever the threat that they [imagined] had been neutralized,” Smith said. “I actually complimented them on their charm once they calmed down and took off their Kevlar.”

At that point, the agents got to work. First they questioned employees in different rooms. In both the search warrant they presented, and in their questions, the agents focused on two issues, according to Smith: Whether CAA has provided federally funded emergency heating oil to undocumented immigrants, by entering fake social security numbers into a computer system. And whether, going back to 2002, “the mayor or his staff” or other “politicians may have forced their way” with employees to provide free heating oil for people who didn’t qualify.

Smith said the agents didn’t name any politicians in particular. The questions pertained to incidents that allegedly occurred before Smith took over the agency, he said.

Among the problems that plagued CAA over the years has been fighting among board members, some of them aldermen or others active in city politics.

“We have never engaged in any conversation of this nature with Amos or Darnell [Goldson, Smith’s predecessor],” said mayoral spokeswoman Jessica Mayorga. “We haven’t applied any pressure. We haven’t had any conversations regarding heating assistance with CAA. There would be no truth to any rumor linking the city” to applying pressure.

The federal agents stayed at CAA almost until dawn Friday toting away up to 90 boxes of documents, Smith said. He said he wasn’t sure which boxes were taken; the staff was in the process of gathering information about that Friday afternoon.

The material removed dated back to at least 2003, according to Smith.

An HHS spokesman, Don White, declined to detail the questions the agents were pursuing. “We’re an investigative agency. We do not have prosecutorial powers,” White said. “OIG is here to ensure that money for the programs [funded by] the Department of Health and Human Services … is being used efficiently and the public’s money is not being wasted.” OIG examines all of HHS’s over 350 programs, he said.

Much of CAA’s $13 million budget comes from HHS, according to Smith. None comes from HUD. (White said he didn’t know why HUD agents participated in the raid.) CAA does get $25,000 a year from the Federal Emergency Management Administration, Smith said. He said CAA employs 47 full-time employees and 42 or so part-timers.

“Xenophobia”

The actions of some of those “disgruntled” employees are at the root of the raid, Smith argued.

“Whistleblowers” have reported to various government agencies this past year that they were instructed to invent social security numbers on CAA computers in order to give undocumented immigrants free heating oil. Federal rules prohibit giving the oil to undocumented immigrants. The story produced outrage from state Republicans, who called for an investigation. It also led the state, which regulates CAA, to change rules for how to process applications for heating oil.

Smith said it is true that a few undocumented families received oil, though not at the direction of CAA management.

Here’s how the process worked, he said: When people apply for oil, if they don’t have a social security number on them, they get 7 to 10 days to produce one. Meanwhile, the computer system has a drop-down menu for handling such cases. It doesn’t have employees “invent” a social security number. It has them press a button so a temporary “substitute” number can be entered in order for the client’s application to be processed in the meantime, Smith said.

The system has worked that way since 1982, Smith said. It was designed to handle, say, older folks who forget their numbers and lost their cards. The system was designed automatically to terminate applications if the number isn’t produced within 7 to 10 days. Even then, though, if the person meets other criteria — such as producing evidence of having participated in other government programs — the agency employee had the discretion to approve the application if there was no suspicion of wrongdoing, Smith said.

In the uproar this year over the immigration question, state officials ordered agencies to change their procedures. Gone is the drop-down menu. In cases where applicants produce no social security number, employees must process the applications manually and seek guidance from the state. They may not inquire into applicants’ immigration status.

In the entire state only 330 such substitute social security numbers were entered on heating assistance applications, Smith said. Fewer than 150 of those applicants ended up getting oil. “When you look at 100,000 people [receiving aid] — even if you stay at the higher number [of 330], you’re talking about three-tenths of 1 percent of” applicants who may have inappropriately received heating oil. A tiny percentage.

In addition, “nobody forced” employees to process applications that way, Smith said. Instead, the whistleblower complaints arose for two reasons, he said.

Reason one, he said: “There’s the issue of xenophobia. There’s the issue of people’s feelings about this mayor.” Some employees vigorously opposed Mayor John DeStefano immigrant-friendly policies, like the introduction of an immigrant-friendly resident ID card, Smith said. So they wanted to embarrass the mayor.

Reason two for the whistleblower complaints, according to Smith: Some employees and former employees have also sought to embarrass him and thwart his team trying to clean up CAA. The employees were used to a culture over 17 years of not having to work hard, or be disciplined for poor service to the public; and being able to call on political connections, including on the old board of directors, to protect them. “This place was operated for 17 years without discipline and order,” he said. Some veterans have had trouble “working in an environment where you’re here to serve other people, not yourself.”

His efforts — including instituting a new employee handbook and job descriptions with clear-cut rules and goals — have met with racist graffiti on his door (written by fellow African-Americans), threats, and vandalism, he said. In fact, on Thursday he at first thought the agents were representatives of a local security company. Smith had called the company because someone had cut the wires to an office alarm system for the second time in a week. Seeing all the men entering with Kevlar vests, “I thought, ‘This is a big response.’”

Picket Threatened

Picture%20825.jpg Meanwhile, as Smith spoke, low-income families seeking heating oil filled the CAA waiting room. They said they’d been waiting as long as four hours to begin to have their applications processed. They were mad.

One of the clients, Camille Joyner (pictured), stormed outside at one point and vowed to organize other clients to picket the agency.

Click on the play arrow to watch her make her case.

Picture%20826.jpg “They’re playing with my heat,” complained Cherease Robinson, 30. “I’ve been calling everyday They don’t answer.” She’s supposed to apply from home because her lupus keeps her homebound, she said. But she’s waited two weeks to reach someone, so she came in person Friday, only to sit for over three hours before seeing someone.

caa%202.jpg Cynthia DeRose (pictured with grandson Christopher) arrived at 9:30 a.m. and still not seen anyone by 12:30 she said.

Amos Smith said the agency was indeed particularly short-staffed Friday. Some employees didn’t come in because they were “trying to recover” from the trauma of Thursday’s raid. Some were late because they were attending to their children’s weather-related school opening delay.

“If you come tomorrow, people will be here working, processing applications,” Smith said.

“We’re going to get through this. When they look at a lot of the stuff we’ve done the last 16 months,” including increased services to people, the agency will be exonerated, he predicted. (The state social-services commissioner expressed support for Smith’s efforts in a release issued Thursday night, contained in this article. He also said his agency is investigating evidence Smith forwarded about double-billing in CAA’s elderly nutrition program.) Smith said he couldn’t comment on shenanigans that may have taken place before he arrived at the agency.

“The community deserves” better than CAA historically gave it, Smith said.

“We’ll get this right,” he said. “Or else the state will shut this down. Or they’ll kill me to stop from making this the best social service provider in the country.”

Share this story: digg / newsvine / facebook

Comments

Posted by: JanetP | December 14, 2007 3:12 PM

The article makes reference to 'whistleblowers.' I call them heroes. I think this is a good way to get illegals off the public dole. Every employee who is aware of illegals receiving aid to which they are not entitled to should do the same. It is every American's responsibility to do their part in taking back our country.

Posted by: WEBbloger 1 | December 14, 2007 3:53 PM

A Federal & State review of this agency is long over due. The history of irregularities by NH CAA is long and exhausting, covers over 20 years of questionable practices. It is time to fully determine the reason and systemic causes for the alleged misappropriations, accounting problems, AKA thief's at this agency.

The board of directors for years has failed to provide proper oversight; the current members should resign immediately.

"The community deserves" better than CAA historically gave it, Smith said.
"We'll get this right," he said. "Or else the state will shut this down. Or they'll kill me to stop from making this the best social service provider in the country."

Wrong answer Smith, you should leave forthwith

Posted by: I know the true story | December 14, 2007 10:01 PM

Amos Smith is a joke. First of all, he only reported the problem after the whisleblower had reported his shenanigans to the feds, check the record. Second, when Goldson was there, nobody had to wait three to five hours just to see someone, that is outrageous and par for course since he took over. Third, trying to shift the focus from his problems to perceived problems with the mayor is common practice for one who is as deep trouble as he is. And finally, he keeps talking of improvements he has supposingly made in the last 16 months, but all I have seen is increased waiting times for clients, a disfunctional board of directors where half the board resigned, and news reports of investigations and raids by the feds.

Posted by: bugupit | December 14, 2007 11:55 PM

Once again, NHI gets the good detailed inside story. But Paul, as you sat with Amos Smith, were you self concsious that your interview was keeping him from helping low income people? Short staffed, traumatized as CAA was on Friday, your story speaks of people trying for weeks to get registered. Why, Mr. Smith? Did you roll up your sleeves? How many applicants did you interview and process on Friday? I guess what I am saying is, People before Press, even for the CEO.

Posted by: TylersDad | December 15, 2007 12:09 AM

Mr. Smith lacks understanding of basic law enforcement procedures. He makes it sound as though wearing kevlar is ominous. Kevlar saves lives. Law enforcement officers wear kevlar vests for the same reason people wear seatbelts. 99.9% of the time, they are not needed. The other .1% of the time, they are very glad they are wearing them.

Posted by: Dustin W. Goldq | December 15, 2007 12:41 AM

Great piece of reporting. I interviewed Amos in September and he had a much different attitude when questioned about the situation.

Posted by: Chris Gray | December 15, 2007 2:13 AM

Mr. Smith seems to have his head on quite straight. His analysis of his situation and the problems he has faced and will face is realistic, including the possibility that the agency might be closed.

I truly enjoyed his comment extolling the investigators' charm.

Meanwhile, your reporting highlights the vital needs the Agency is meant to fulfill and the human tragedy that will result without those needs being met, whether through fraud, theft or simple denial of services.

Where have our city leaders been, so as to let an Agency get so out of hand for so long? Where have we been, so as to leave them unaccountable for it?

Posted by: westvillecharlie | December 15, 2007 3:28 AM

The agency, like the population they supposedly serve, are increasilgly both lazy and often illegal.
My dog has a better sense of judgement, and would be a better distributor of funds. Those of us with full time jobs, non-subsidized incomes and full citizenship should be considered for assistance just as much as anyone else. Those of us who make over say.. . . $100k per year however, should get less assistance than a family making $70k, or individuals making $35k, however, there should be something - even a break of %10-20 from our supposed buddies in Venezulea, like mr. kennedy and destefano have promoted in those adds (who paid for those?).
the c.a.a. is not worthy of our trust, and should be disbanded.
By the way, what are the folks at Empower New Haven doing for our heating needs?

Posted by: Walt | December 15, 2007 6:49 AM

Not an expert, but as the only member of its original Board of Directors who spoke out against what I saw as conflict of interest by Director Cuevas and the feeding of money to his special friends, I was not unhappy when the feds finally investigated its activities.

As I recall, at least 3/4 of the original Board members were staffers of groups receiving or asking for CAA money, none of whom backed up my protests.

To me , it looks like the new leaders are trying to reform the operation, and that the fed acts this week are aimed mostly at the old guard.

Good luck to the new CAA leaders, but, because of past history, the feds should be continue to be vigilant in checking for mal-administration no matter who is responsible, and punishing any culprits...

Posted by: Walt | December 15, 2007 1:08 PM

Looks like I misread, and the investigation is re the newer controlling group.

Stuff re Cuevas group stands, but continuing strong overseeing of this operation still gets my OK.

Don't recall considering contacting the feds re the earlier conflicts of interest, but probably should have,

Posted by: Taxpayer and disgruntled worker | December 15, 2007 1:48 PM

So Paul, the way to get you to not focus on the true facts of this investigation is to claim "xenophobia". Let's get real, the agency was raided because this current leadership cheated the state and federal government, and therefore us taxpayers, out of a lot of money. And it doesn't stop there. They will find that many in leadership at the agency were granting themselves services, while the common clients sat in the waiting room for many hours. Why don't you go back to the agency early nest week and see if things have changed. Ask anyone who has received services there in the past, when Goldson was the Director, and you will hear how there was never more than a 15 mnute wait for assistance. This place has gone to the dogs.

Posted by: strangerthanfiction | December 15, 2007 7:24 PM

CAA is the most chronically troubled agency in town. It's time to dissolve it and start fresh. Why should folks who urgently need heating assistance suffer because this agency is always under a cloud? Too much baggage, too much of a corrupt reputation. Forget about saving CAA. Bury it and start anew with a fresh agency that can do the job.

Posted by: JJones | December 15, 2007 8:03 PM

"Where have city leaders been?" They have been a large part of the problem! Dumping of political hacks onto the CAA payroll, hiring of incompetent staff due to who they were related to, or were friends with, and Mayoral appointees to the Board who were a bunch of psychos and saw the agency as their piggy bank. That's where they have been.

Posted by: bugupit | December 15, 2007 9:32 PM

JJ's got it re: City Hall. I said to a friend on Friday, setup a new agency. Move one program, with its funding and clients, at a time to the new agency, then close the doors on CAA forever. But...and this is a Big Butt... will the Mayor control appointments to the board of the new agency? I say no, I say bring BACK in State DSS... those of you above who say where wss the State should remember that the State took over this agency temporarily a few years back, but with a strong distaste for running CAA in the long term, quickly turned it over to a DeStefanocracy.

Posted by: Wait A Second | December 16, 2007 4:42 PM

While this site's commenters often blame the Mayor, that's likely inappropriate here.

My recollection was that he has long refused to engage with CAA because he asked DSS to take it over years ago (after one of its prior imbroglios) and they did not. I do not believe he has even been willing to make appointments to the board for a long time.

As odd as it sounds to some commenters here, it appears that City Hall's stand on CAA has been on the money -- that it is dysfunctional, broken and has a sad history of corruption without accountability.

And Starkowski at DSS has been nothing but an enabler. He continually vouches for CAA, first as deputy commissioner and now as commissioner.

Posted by: Khalil | December 16, 2007 7:40 PM

It seems that the government would like to freeze people to death. Is that what justice is all about? Punishing people who work 10-14 hours a day, who pay property taxes, and who are essential to this economy, by freezing them to death. Those who advocate punishing people without documents by freezing them to death are advocating the most immoral punishment on people who work hard to feed their families. Shame. Shame. Shame.

Posted by: Miriam Kurland | December 16, 2007 10:09 PM

I just find it so sad that there would be such outrage towards people who are just asking for heat... be they documented or undocumented immigrants or simply the unemployed. With the billions and billions of dollars stolen from our pockets yearly to pay corporate thieves and immoral wars, how foolish the outrage towards human beings who struggle to care for their families. Sad it is when we fall into the trap of turning against each other instead of standing up against the giants who are the only ones deserving of protest.

Posted by: Germano Kimbro | December 16, 2007 11:52 PM

Hey Paul as always enjoy the site. Keep up the great work.

Posted by: king james v | December 17, 2007 12:26 AM

has anyone on this site ever known anyone who was helped by these guys?
I inquired about getting help for my mom who is 65, and squeaking by on social security, has a house (small house, in need of lots of repairs) that has oil heat. After the conversation i had, i wanted to go down there and beat people with a wiffle ball bat. I'm happy to see this misallocations of funds and effort go down the drain. It's a scam, a big scam.
And, by the way, yes, American Citizens, and especially the african american, new haven born community that constantly gets passed over for illegal immigrants, should get the fuel first.

Posted by: nfjanette | December 17, 2007 12:51 AM

Ask anyone who has received services there in the past, when Goldson was the Director, and you will hear how there was never more than a 15 mnute wait for assistance.

Not even close. Try: hours of dealing with incompetent, lazy, apathetic "workers". This place needs to be gutted and rebuild from the ground up with all new people and constant monitoring.

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 17, 2007 9:34 AM

I got it for a while and if you were a walk in you waited a long time but you can make an appointment ahead of time you wait for about 15 min's.

king james v If the only income your mom has is SSI and she lives alone... she should be able to get it. Grant it there is alot of paperwork and proof you need to bring. But as long as she is financially qualified she should be able to get help. Now I am just talking about fuel assistance. There are other thing they offer I think weatherizing is a real long waiting list.

Posted by: THREEFIFTHS | December 17, 2007 11:36 AM

King James Makes A Good Point What About The Illegal Immigrants That Got Free Fuel First?

Posted by: Cheri | December 17, 2007 1:23 PM

Is there any real evidence that african-american new havenites are passed over for fuel assitance, so that illegals can be granted the fuel assistance?

Posted by: Dustin W. Gold | December 17, 2007 6:04 PM

The giants are the politicians, the unions, the churches, and the businesses. They are the ones encouraging the illegal aliens to come here, so that they can profit off of slave labor. Many of them do not even need the slave labor, but profit merely from a rapidly growing population.

American citizens and legal immigrants are already competing for jobs against illegal aliens, and soon we will be working for below minimum wage. If we do not unify as Americans and tell our elected and appointed officials that this not what we want, then we will all be screaming when it's too late.

The United States and its citizens cannot bare this amount of responsibility; we need to take care of our own citizens first, as much as I have compassion for these people.

Mexico, where 75% of the illegal population comes from, is the richest of third world countries. Why aren't we bringing millions of people from Malawi, the poorest country in the world, to the United States and putting them on welfare programs?

Think about it, someone is paying for the oil - the American taxpayer. Are you willing to have your taxes increased? The more oil that is given out, the higher taxes rise. If your answer is yes, you are more than willing to make a private donation to the Community Action Agency - it may not reach the oil tanks of the illegals, but I'm sure someone would appreciate it.

Posted by: WOWNewHaven | December 18, 2007 8:17 AM

People, the powers to be like it when people who are struggling, are paired off against one another, fighting over crumbs. Illegals, african american, the poor, and the supposed middle class (the working poor), we are just up against it, all the time.

In the entire state, 330 people may have received assistance, .3% error rate. Come on, quit complaining about a nonissue.

The overall track record of CAA is in questioned. But hey, they ve been doing the dirty job that nobody wants to do, helping the poor and those who are up against it. And I think we are happy they do it, because we dont have to deal with it. But when it is convenient, we do love to kick the puppy to take out our rage about our own situation. In the end, we really do not contribute to the problem of the increasing centralization of wealth among a few.

It is interesting that Rep Candelora (Republican) and Sen Fasano (Republican) have decided to be the watchdogs over public assistance, when many of the policies put forth by their party benefit those who want to centralize wealth among a few.

If the good representatives of our suburban brothers and sisters really wanted to help us, they should examine more closely their party's policies.

Shame on Candelora and Fasano for staking their claim against the fuel assistance program on an error rate (well intentioned to not let people freeze) of .3%.

Shame on Candelora and Fasano for taking advantage of the xenophobia now so prevalent in our country. I guess racism is out of fashion now. Rep. Candelora and Sen Fasano continue to serve their party well. I hope they enjoy their crumbs.

Posted by: Wait A Second | December 18, 2007 10:45 AM

CAA did not deprive someone else of fuel assistance and give it to undocumented people. That's just ridiculous race-baiting.

The error rate of .3% is not even undocumented immigrants -- it's just the error rate meaning that the social security numbers were entered incorrectly or not at all.

This does not mean the people were undocumented. Possibly some fraction were but the undocumented are typically terrified to give out information to a government agency. And apparently with good reason.

The truth of the matter is that:

1. There has been a very limited amount of documented fraud by people using the heating assistance program. This appears to be almost entirely citizens who understate their income. You will recall that the case that got a lot of TV attention a few years ago was not of a low income undocumented Latino but of a white woman living in the suburbs of New Haven in a very nice house. This kind of fraud DSS has repeatedly said is basically the only kind of fraud they really see.

2. Many (maybe most) undocumented families are mixed (some members here legally, some citizens, and some undocumented). Witch hunts like this one mean that families that need heat and are entitled to it because of the "legal" members of the family, will not seek it, putting children at risk.

3. We are at war, tens of millions of people lack health insurance, and we still have a problem with childhood hunger -- yet we spend money for federal agents to chase ghosts.

4. Who is to say that there is a moral reason for depriving heat to those human beings that need it. Under what religious or non-religious moral doctrine is such a thing justified?

5. Senator Fasano has been so antagonistic to New Haven and the people who live here for so long that he should get some kind of an award. Maybe he should deal with all the drug users in his district who help fuel many of the problems in the city and region. But don't expect him to open a methadone clinic in East Haven anytime soon.

Posted by: Dustin W. Gold | December 18, 2007 4:26 PM

WOWNewHaven,

Stop it, that is a disgrace. State Rep. Candelora is an ethical man that stands on the side of the law. He is not a partisan politician, and you would understand that if you knew him. His stance is the same as mine - we have compassion for these people, but the law does not allow them to receive energy assistance.

As a state rep. he is not in the position to challenge federal law. Much like the Mayor should not be challenging federal law.

Being the person that conducted the independent investigation that was turned over to the federal agencies, I can tell you that the .3% margin of error is a lie. That number came from Dr. James Gatling, President of the Connecticut Association for Community Action, during the October 9 Appropriations Committee Hearing in Hartford.

The Department of Social Services conducted an "investigation" in June, but it was never released to the public. The numbers we are interested in seeing will come from the federal investigation - an outside source.

Posted by: WOWNewHaven | December 18, 2007 6:15 PM

Dustin W Gold,
I went to your website. Man, you got some serious issues. That aside, Sen Fasano and Rep Candelora should take a look at your website and listen to your rants before they consider associating themselves with you, unless their objective is to fan the flames of xenophobia for political advantage. If that is the case, then I guess they found their man and you found an audience.

Your concept of compassion is rather skewd. Perhaps you might want to consider reading Les Miserables (do not worry, it is translated into English). Those who parrot "the law is the law" are often those who are in the position to be mericful, but seldom are.

Rep Candelora and Sen. Fasano, in this situation, are way off the mark. They would have been "more ethical" to assure that no one be left in the cold, regardless of their status, orientation, race, sex, age, economic background, or whatever other classification we would wish to bestow on people so as to avoid the inconvenience of being compassionate.

Happy Holidays Dustin.

Posted by: Les Wilson | December 18, 2007 8:08 PM

It's amazing how all the illegal immigration supporters never use the word "illegal."

Posted by: Dustin W. Gold | December 18, 2007 11:12 PM

Statesman Wownewhaven,

Refer to federal law having to do with energy assistance and also refer to AG Blumenthal's opinion if you want to know who is and is not eligible for assistance. We are fortunate to have lawmakers that do not put emotion above law.

All of the legislators that supported violating federal law by allowing illegals to receive aid were responsible for provoking the federal raid. Now the feds have a list of all of the illegal aliens and their addresses. Who was truly exploiting the illegal aliens for political gain?

God Bless America and the City of New Haven,
Merry Christmas WOW

Posted by: J.Golden | December 19, 2007 1:10 PM

First and foremost lets clear up a few things:

1. the reason people were seen so quickly when darnell was working is because he had a different system from that of Mr. Smith

2. everyone knew that CAA was corrupt, thats why they (the state) brought in Mr. Smith to clean it up, and i don't care if Mr. Smith was superman during his off time, you can't clean up a decade's worth of trash with a push broom and a mop, things take time

now my opionon on this matter is that there is corruption, there are whistleblowers and there is a resolution, as an ex employee of CAA i can say with a truthful heart that there was no corruption during the time i was there under Mr. Smith, there was a lot of red tape, but no corruption, all the fires were being put out one by one, but to be honest how can you put out one fire when there is blaze coming at you. now here is my suggestion, stop complaining, show some patience and have some faith, as a people, not black or white, but as a people can we come together and focus and fix the problem at hand and one more thing, the individuals who wrote the crap on the door of the agency are cowards, thank you and god bless

Posted by: cedarhillresident | December 19, 2007 4:17 PM

I can name 2 people I know of that get section 8 work at community action and have there spouses (significant other) living with them, do not report that income, but I am sure that everyone that knows these women all know that is the circumstance. It makes me mad that nothing is done. That money can go to a family or woman that needs it really but is stuck on a waiting list because of this kind of abuse. What gets me is people in that office know it too.
But I do not want to single out all that work there because most are honest hard working people. And this program is a great help. But I wish there were more whistle blowers in there.

Posted by: WOWNewHaven | December 19, 2007 8:51 PM

Dustin Gold,
What is your purpose? The erradication of all illegals? What is your solution? Deport them all? Let them freeze to death? Deprive them of the lousey jobs that no one else will do so they can not buy food? Make laws to throw them on the streets? Round them up, concentrate them in camps, until a solution is determined? Perhaps you have a final solution to this problem?

You clearly fancy Paul Bass' paper. It seems that you like to use the creditable articles of the New Haven Independant in your "website." But your objectivity is somewhat dubious.

Perhaps if you lived in a less sheltered environment, gotten out from behind your computer, and get to know people different than yourself, you might have a broader experience of life and people. To bad. Maybe Santa will bring you a new heart?

Happy Holidays Dustin. I hope 2008 is a better year for you. hugs.

Posted by: Chris Gray | December 20, 2007 1:42 AM

Wait a second, are you trying to say the Mayor, the leader of the local and, judging by his run for Governor, the state Democratic Party, with a Democratic majority in the legislature, can neither go in and appoint a decent Board of Directors, clean house and set this agency on a right track nor is he willing to do so when such vital needs may end up going unmet?

This is the same man who rose to prominence on his stewardship of the Shubert off of New Haven subsidy to privately operated self-sufficiency, under the Chief, Mayor DiLeto, right?

That should have been like herding cats compared to this.

Posted by: Dustin W. Gold | December 21, 2007 12:46 AM

If I only had heart...well then you must be the scarecrow. I cannot debate with people that have no understanding of and no respect for the law.

Good Day to you and have a Merry Christmas,
Dustin

2007 has been great, but I have many new surprises for 2008 - Keep your eyes open and your ears waxed! God Bless!

New Haven Independent

CAA Chief Details Raid — & Responds

Comments

Sorry, Comments are closed for this entry

Sections

Neighborhood News

Special Sections

Legal Notices

Some Favorite Sites

Government/ Community Links

Legal Notices

Flyerboard

Sponsors

N.H.I. Site Design & Development

NHI Store

News Feed