Gov. Andrew Cuomo wants New York City to stop requiring fingerprinting of its food stamp recipients, a stance that puts him at odds with the city’s mayor, who favors the practice.
Cuomo says fingerprinting stigmatizes needy people and stops them from applying for help. In a recent State of the State speech, Cuomo pledged to stop fingerprinting food stamp recipients this year.
But New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says without fingerprinting, fraud would escalate.
Besides Arizona, New York is the only place where the policy still exists. New York was one of the first states in the country to use digital imaging to take people’s fingerprints back in 1996. Three other states eventually adopted the practice, but two of them — California and Texas — ended fingerprinting last year. New York City remains the only place in the state that fingerprints food stamp recipients….
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