WELFARE FINGERPRINTING PROPOSAL FOCUS OF FINGER-POINTING DEBATE.(CAPITAL REGION)

Byline: MICHAEL MCKEON - Staff writer

The County Legislature had its own version of "Crossfire" on Thursday as supporters and opponents of a proposal to fingerprint welfare recipients squared off at a public hearing.

The 2 1/2-hour session brought out advocates for the plan like Change-NY, the conservative Republican group, and opponents like the Hunger Action Network, which advocates for welfare clients.

Both sides of the debate used a recent state report that claimed pilot programs in Rockland and Onondaga counties saved nearly $700,000 in one year by deterring fraud. But the same report conceded there was no solid evidence that the savings …