Friday, September 18, 2026, 1 p.m. (New York City time), 250 Broadway - 8th Floor - Hearing Room 1
Committee: Committee on Veterans
The Committee on Veterans, joined with the Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse, held an oversight hearing on mental health and substance abuse services for veterans and military families in New York City. Department of Veterans Services Commissioner Sanna Mata testified about the Dwyer program, Mission VetCheck, VetConnect, and local law reporting, and answered extensive questions from council members on data gaps, Local Laws 37 and 39 compliance, housing, incarcerated veterans, LGBT veterans, and suicide prevention. The committees also heard about Resolution 493, sponsored by Council Member Ariola, which would declare April 7 White Star Family Day; the administration testified in support. Public testimony came from a gold star spouse advocating for white star family recognition, a father who lost his son to suicide, a Legal Aid Society attorney on veterans treatment courts, Samaritans of New York on suicide prevention, and a veteran advocate speaking remotely.
0:31 Room one we've got good
0:31 afternoon and welcome to the
0:35 New York City councilor
0:38 hearing for the committee on
0:39 veterans joined with the
0:40 committee on malta health and
0:43 substance abuse this time,
0:44 please, but all devices on
0:47 silent anyone wasn't t
0:48 otestify or have any questions,
0:49 please see one of the sergeant
0:51 at arms going forward. No one
0:52 to stop a person to death. You
0:59 begin good afternoon. I am
1:00 Council Member Frank Morano. I
1:02 have the privilege of being
1:04 the chair of the committee on
1:05 veterans. Thank you for
1:07 joining us today for our
1:08 oversight hearing with the
1:09 committee on mental health and
1:12 substancebuse a and you will
1:14 hear from their distinguished
1:15 chair person in just a moment
1:17 a me and I'm very, very much
1:19 looking forward to today's
1:22 hearing. I really can't say
1:25 enough about the value that I
1:28 think these hearings have had.
1:30 I've been lucky enough to
1:32 chair this committee, you know
1:33 New yorkers as many people
1:35 know are cynical and, if
1:37 possible, staten islanders
1:39 that I represent can be the
1:41 most cynical of a cynical
1:44 group and oftentimes when I
1:45 tcomes to the public and, quite
1:48 frankly, even a lot of
1:49 legislators. There's a lot o
1:52 fhead scratching about what
1:54 these hearings actually
1:55 accomplished. I'm not
1:56 necessarily talking about this
1:56 committee, but any of these
1:59 hearings in geralen, there's
2:00 the feeling that in fact, I
2:02 said this today multiple times
2:03 . There's a feeling that
2:05 there's a lot of grandstanding
2:08 politicians asking questions,
2:09 too a lot of stonewalling
2:11 bureaucrats and it's not
2:13 necessarily clear what's being
2:14 moved forward. I really do
2:15 think that the committee
2:16 hearings that we've held have
2:19 stood in stark contrast t
2:20 othat. Not only the testimony
2:21 that we've gotten from the
2:23 administration, not only the
2:24 reports that the committee has
2:26 prepared, but the dynamic
2:29 testimony from the public,
2:32 including public, by the way.
2:33 Who is occasionally critical
2:34 of the work that this council
2:36 has been doing on veterans
2:38 affairs. Whether it's been the
2:39 hearing that we had on post 9
2:42 11 veterans. Whether it's bee
2:43 nthe hearings that we've had o
2:46 hthat we did on veterans of
2:51 color whether it's been the
2:55 hearing and associated
2:55 roundtable that we've done on
2:58 post 9 11 veterans or on
3:00 female veterans each of the
3:02 each of those hearings has
3:06 produced concrete legislation
3:07 that I am looking forward to
3:09 introducing in some cases I
3:11 have introduced and I think it
3:15 really does lay the groundwork
3:18 for actually improving the
3:19 lives of the large number of
3:21 veterans that live in New York
3:23 City, and I'm hopeful that
3:24 this hearing that we're going
3:26 to undertake today, which is
3:27 not a very important issue
3:29 does that same thing. Let's
3:30 talk a little bit about some
3:31 of the recent history that
3:32 we're going to be exploring
3:34 today in of 20 24. These
3:37 committees examined the city's
3:39 efforts to support veterans
3:40 and their families impacted by
3:42 ptsd at that time New York
3:45 city's department of veteran
3:47 services highlighted its
3:48 family outreach efforts, their
3:51 mental health programs and
3:53 resource navigation services,
3:54 while local laws 37 38 39 and
3:58 40 of 20 24, had just taken
4:01 effect. The council is eagerly
4:03 awaiting reporting required
4:04 under local law 37, which is
4:06 intended to help identify
4:08 veterans when they interact
4:09 with City agencies and connect
4:12 them to available services.
4:13 One spoiler alert for the
4:16 public far too many City
4:18 agencies are not in compliance
4:19 with local law 37. We're going
4:23 to find out who the biggest
4:25 offenders are, and we're going
4:25 to find out what we're going
4:28 to do about why they're not in
4:30 compliance. The City has
4:31 issued reports under local law
4:34 39
4:34 . But participation and data
4:35 quality remain concerns. Only
4:40 10 agencies reported data in
4:41 fiscal year 2024 and only
4:45 seven agencies reported
4:46 quantitative data in fiscal
4:47 year 2025. So while veteran
4:50 identification has improved
4:51 the City, the City still lacks
4:54 a consistent data on whether
4:56 veterans who request mental
4:58 health services ultimately
4:59 received care limiting the
5:02 council's ability to assess
5:02 service access and outcomes
5:05 .these gaps are especially
5:08 important as veterans continue
5:09 to face many of the same
5:11 challenges as other New
5:13 yorkers, including housing,
5:16 instability, affordability,
5:17 pressures, bureaucratic
5:17 barriers and these stigm
5:20 athat's associated with a
5:21 seeking mental health support
5:23 now, eh? Let me tell you a
5:24 little bit about the situation
5:26 involving veterans in New York
5:27 in terms of the numbers,
5:29 according to the u. S
5:31 department of veterans affairs
5:33 New York state ranks ninth in
5:36 total veteran population in 20
5:38 24, there were nearly 18
5:39 million veterans in the u.
5:42 Sand 637542 residing in New
5:46 York state with about a
5:49 hundred 22700 living in New
5:50 York
5:51 , City when we look at and
5:54 explore the effects of
5:57 military service on veteran
5:58 psychological health. There
5:59 are so many different aspects
6:01 to look at and it's one of the
6:03 reasons why I think veterans
6:05 issues really affect the
6:06 issues that every single City
6:07 agencies deals deals with the
6:10 impacts of military service on
6:12 psychological health as you
6:13 might guess are quite complex
6:15 and as a result, veterans tend
6:18 to suffer from substance and
6:19 alcohol use and misuse sexual
6:23 trauma, behavioral health
6:24 issues and mental health
6:26 disorders, including post
6:27 traumatic stress disorders.
6:28 Now what are the key barriers
6:31 to mental health and substance
6:33 use care among veterans in New
6:34 York state well, veterans in
6:38 the state continue t
6:40 oexperience significant unmet
6:41 mental health and substance
6:43 use treatment needs despite
6:44 high rates of health insurance
6:46 coverage and access to va
6:48 benefits. Think about that
6:50 even when people have
6:51 insurance and are covered,
6:55 they're still having
6:55 difficulty for whatever reason
6:58 either accessing or taking
6:59 advantage of the benefits that
7:01 they are legally entitled to
7:02 and that the taxpayers are
7:03 paying for them to receive
7:05 this gap in treatment is due
7:07 to a lot of challenges,
7:09 including difficulty
7:11 navigating the behavioral
7:13 health system and
7:14 understanding available
7:16 benefits negative stigma in
7:16 some quarters towards
7:19 treatment a geographic and
7:20 logistical barriers and
7:22 increasing need for equity and
7:24 cross cultural competency
7:25 training to better identify
7:26 the needs of female veterans
7:29 lgbt plus veterans and
7:32 veterans from racial and
7:33 ethnic minority backgrounds
7:34 now, with all that in mine. We
7:37 have heard a great deal of
7:39 late about that connect and y
7:44 c. Veterans, advocates and
7:45 nonprofit providers and City
7:47 council members have regularly
7:49 raised concerns about the
7:51 vector vet, connect portal
7:54 site since itsncep ition in 28
7:58 users continue to fac
8:01 edifficulties accessing and
8:02 navigating the portal reaching
8:04 agency staff and caseworkers
8:05 and a lack of follow low up
8:06 after seeking services, which
8:09 is contributed to delayed
8:10 access to services including
8:13 mental health services and
8:14 that was spelled out recently
8:17 in a report by the New York
8:18 City controller mark levin
8:20 . In addition to our oversight
8:22 topic today. We're going to be
8:25 hearing about resolution
8:26 number 4 9 3, which is
8:29 sponsored by Council Member,
8:32 which would declare April 7 as
8:36 white star family day in the
8:38 City of New York now because
8:42 we do not a Council Member
8:43 ariel just message me that she
8:45 actually doesn't have a link
8:48 to log on, but she did send me
8:50 to the to read on her behalf
8:54 about resolution 4 9
8:55 . Three, she says resolution
8:58 493, addresses an important
8:59 gap in how we recognize
9:02 families who have lost a
9:03 service member or veteran to
9:05 suicide white star families
9:06 carry a loss that is often
9:09 deeply painful and unlike gold
9:11 star families. They currently
9:13 have no formal designation or
9:16 official recognition,
9:17 specifically acknowledging
9:19 their service this resolution
9:20 is about making sure these
9:21 families aren't overlooked and
9:25 that their loss is recognized
9:26 with the dignity and respect
9:28 it deserves our veterans and
9:30 service members dedicate
9:31 themselves to protecting our
9:32 country and our commitment t
9:34 othem should not end when their
9:35 service ends, we must also
9:37 recognize and support the
9:38 families who are left behind,
9:40 particularly those facing the
9:42 unique grief, stigma and
9:45 challenges associated with
9:47 City. We are taking aring
9:53 meaningful step towards
9:55 bringing greater awareness t
9:56 oveteran suicide and ensuring
9:57 that the families affected by
10:00 it know that their loss has
10:02 not been forgotten. I urge my
10:04 colleagues to join me in
10:06 recognizing these families and
10:08 supporting resolution for 9 3
10:11 .now I want to acknowledge my
10:15 colleagues on both committees
10:16 who are here today, the man
10:17 who I believe still has
10:20 perfect committee attendance
10:20 or pretty close to it. Uh, the
10:23 distinguished Council Member
10:24 . From queens, Phil wang.
10:26 Is here as well as a council
10:29 ball from the boogie down
10:31 bronx is here as well before I
10:34 conclude I want. I would like
10:37 to acknowledge a council
10:37 member cab on the chair of the
10:41 committee on mental health and
10:42 substance abuse for working
10:42 with me on this oversight
10:45 hearing she recognizes as much
10:46 as I do? How crucial it is to
10:51 address the mental health
10:52 issues veterans face and the
10:54 barriers to treatment that
10:56 many still experience. I want
10:58 to just reiterate how
11:02 genuinely privileged and
11:03 fortunate. I am to be able to
11:06 co chair this hearing with a
11:07 Council Member cca on if you
11:09 were to try to find the two
11:11 council members that probably
11:13 have the least similar voting
11:15 records in our counsel, it
11:17 would probably be council
11:19 carbon and me, eh? At hearing
11:22 and I think at the one that we
11:23 were just at et me the seat on
11:26 the far right facing the
11:28 witness table was occupied by
11:30 me and the seat on the far
11:32 left facing the witness table
11:34 was occupied by her and I
11:36 don't know that that was an
11:38 accident. I will tell you one
11:41 of the reasons I was so eager
11:43 to co chair this hearing with
11:45 council carbon is, I think by
11:46 the two of us co chairing this
11:49 hearing together. Not only do
11:50 I think we usually ask the
11:52 best questions and all the
11:53 hearings, but I think it sends
11:56 such a powerful message about
11:58 mental health and substance
12:00 abuse and veterans issues
12:02 specifically that not only is
12:03 this not a partisan issue, but
12:05 you could take the people
12:07 representing the folks in the
12:08 City that are furthest to th
12:09 eright and further to the left
12:13 and show that their
12:14 representatives care about
12:16 this issue just as deeply even
12:18 if we end up having somewhat
12:21 different solutions in terms
12:21 of how to address it, I think
12:23 addressing it to begin with is
12:26 really the first hurdle that
12:27 we as New yorkers need t
12:29 oovercome, you know, in the pro
12:32 wrestling world that politics
12:33 and government often seems a
12:37 lot of times your caution,
12:38 though you don't want to be
12:39 seen with this person you
12:40 don't want to be seen working
12:42 with this person not only do I
12:46 find council cab on to be one
12:48 of the most intelligent and
12:50 hard members of this body, but
12:53 I think the mentality that I
12:55 just described is exactly the
12:57 problem in politics and
12:59 government these days and I
12:59 want to find the people that I
13:03 disagree with the most and
13:04 those are the folks that I
13:05 want to work with the most on
13:07 the issues that we both care
13:09 about and, uh, I was, uh I was
13:13 warned that a Council Member
13:15 cab on was the
13:16 . Nicest member of this
13:17 council when I was elected and
13:18 those warnings have turned out
13:21 to be true and I'm excited
13:23 that she is able to co chair
13:25 this hearing with me. I also
13:27 want to thank the committee
13:30 staff. Our outgoing
13:32 legislative council, hannah
13:33 coan, our senior legislative
13:35 council council, sarah's
13:38 suture hour legislative
13:39 analyst raina Lee making
13:41 making her debut and very,
13:44 very excited have raina here
13:46 and rain, I think that you'll
13:49 find that when we go through
13:52 legislative analyst's quickly
13:54 here. Hopefully it's not
13:55 because I'm difficult to wor
13:58 kwith, but I'm committed t
13:59 owhile we're working together,
14:01 really leaving an impact on
14:02 veterans issues in New York
14:03 City. I'm excited to work with
14:05 you a legislative policy
14:09 analysts manure,
14:10 boot and Justin campos, who
14:12 as always, have just been
14:15 incredible, financial analyst
14:16 Sandra gray and a community
14:19 associate and someone who's
14:21 absolutely indispensable in
14:21 all the work this committee
14:22 does a sebastian to May for
14:26 their hard work in preparing
14:27 for this hearing
14:27 . I also want to thank my
14:29 staff for their work as we
14:31 continue to serve our
14:32 constituents in the City as a
14:34 whole, particularly my chief
14:35 of staff Frank, wrap it but
14:38 also my director of
14:41 communications, alexis winters
14:42 , who's here today and hails
14:43 from the great borough of
14:45 queens, the borough with the
14:47 highest percentage of veterans
14:49 in our City. Thank you, alexis
14:52 . I'm looking forward t
14:52 otoday's testimony and t
14:55 ostrengthening support veterans
14:57 facing facing accessing mental
14:58 health and substance abuse
14:59 services throughout New York
15:02 City and just one quick note
15:05 for the public and our
15:06 colleagues council members
15:08 long and aldo ball, you kw,no