New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani announced his appointment of Erin Dalton as commissioner of New York City Department of Social Services (DSS).
"New Yorkers deserve leaders who listen and act with urgency. Erin Dalton has spent decades proving that government can and must work better for people who rely on it most. She has expanded access to housing, strengthened social services and protected our most vulnerable neighbors. I'm proud to work alongside Commissioner Dalton to build a city that is more just, effective and accessible for all," said Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
"I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve the people of New York City and to advance Mayor Mamdani's affordability and community safety agenda. DSS can reduce the painful trade-offs families make between food and medicine, housing and safe childcare," said Erin Dalton. "We can work to help the best public servants in the country deliver assistance more efficiently and with greater dignity. And we can work relentlessly so that all New Yorkers have access to better resources. I can't wait to get started."
"As many New Yorkers struggle to secure permanent housing and access other critical resources, it is imperative that city leaders employ strategies that are both innovative and compassionate to assist those most in need-which is exactly what Erin Dalton has done throughout her career," said NYC Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Dr. Helen Arteaga. "I am thrilled to welcome Ms. Dalton as the Commissioner of the Department of Social Services and am confident that her experience providing aid to vulnerable populations, while treating individuals with the dignity and respect they deserve, is exactly what our city needs to meet this moment."
DSS includes the administrative units of the NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA), the nation's largest social services agency, which assists more than three million low-income and vulnerable New Yorkers each year, and the Department of Homeless Services (DHS), which provides temporary emergency shelter to New Yorkers in need while helping families transition to permanent housing and long-term stability.
"Erin Dalton understands the urgent, intersecting challenges facing New Yorkers and brings the kind of executive leadership and vision that large, complex systems require. She has shown what is possible when government acts with dignity, partnership, and accountability, including reducing homelessness and increasing exits from shelter to permanent housing during her tenure in Allegheny County," said Melanie Hartzog, President and CEO of The New York Foundling and Former Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services. "Her career has focused on reforming public systems to deliver help, not deeper system involvement, and modernizing them to be equitable, accountable, and grounded in evidence. I am confident in her ability to use these skills to strengthen the Department of Social Services and improve stability for New Yorkers."
Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato thanked Director Dalton for her service and wished her the best of luck with her new position, saying: "While we are terribly disappointed to lose Director Dalton, we know Allegheny County's loss is New York City's gain. She has given the majority of her professional career coming up with innovative, data-driven, and compassionate solutions in the human services space to better serve the residents of Allegheny County. I'm proud of the work we've done together to house our neighbors, support people with substance use disorder, and reimagine public safety and mental health response. I know she will serve the New York City community well."
"Under Erin's leadership, Allegheny County has been a national leader in keeping children safe from harm through effective early interventions and supportive services that strengthen families to prevent the lifelong impacts of unnecessary separations from loved ones. As a child welfare leader, Erin Dalton pioneered ethical, data-informed approaches to improve child protection decisions for all children and families regardless of race, ethnicity, or their economic status," said David Hansell, Senior Advisor for Child Welfare Policy, Casey Family Programs; former Commissioner, NYC Administration for Children's Services. "She's built integrated systems that supported the needs of children and their families, and understands the critical role that economic, concrete and community support play in child and family well-being. I am confident that as Commissioner of DSS, Erin will bring the same vision, integrity, and leadership to New York City."
About Erin Dalton
Dalton most recently served as the Director of the Allegheny County Department of Human Services (DHS), where she led one of the nation's most innovative and integrated human services systems.
Under her leadership, the department drove measurable progress in crisis response and homelessness, including building a coordinated winter shelter network that reduced the number of people living outdoors by nearly 98%. She also led large-scale reforms across behavioral health and community safety systems, redesigning the county's mobile crisis response system, deploying behavioral health professionals to respond to human service 911 calls, expanding medication-assisted treatment in the jail and advancing violence prevention efforts. During her tenure, violent crime declined by nearly 20%, and incarceration rates fell by almost 10%.
Previously, Dalton directed DHS's analytics, planning and information technology functions, earning national recognition for pioneering ethical uses of integrated data systems to improve outcomes and reduce racial disparities in decision-making.
