Posted on October 21, 2014 by Gabriela Sandoval Requena Earlier this week, the Coalition for the Homeless and The Legal Aid Society testified before the New York City Council in support of Int. 0361-2014, a Local Law that would require the New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS) to grant a presumption of eligibility for applicants to the shelter system who are exiting Human Resources Administration (HRA) domestic violence shelters or runaway and homeless youth shelters administered by the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD). This legislation would eliminate the wasteful and bureaucratic hurdle which hinders housing eligibility for hundreds of households forced to leave HRA domestic violence and DYCD shelters due to arbitrary time restrictions in those systems. … These vulnerable individuals and families who are newly homeless should not have to navigate the confusing maze of City agencies offering different services. Yet they suffer greatly because of their very differences, especially when they face the current wasteful and burdensome eligibility process. And in what can only be described as a truly Kafka-esqe hurdle, domestic violence survivors and RHY are often forced prove once again that they are eligible for shelter – even when they are transferred directly to DHS from another City shelter system. Int. 0361-2014 will eliminate these senseless barriers so vulnerable families can fully focus their energy and efforts towards healing and re-engaging in their community. [Source] Given the record numbers of families in shelters, the Coalition and Legal Aid also highlighted the need for more permanent housing resources targeted to families in shelter, including homeless families and domestic violence survivors, in their joint testimony. As this committee is well aware, the current administration inherited an unprecedented homelessness crisis. There are currently 57,000 homeless New Yorkers, including more than 13,000 families and 24,000 children, sleeping each night in the municipal homeless shelter system, administered by the New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS). (Please see charts attached to this testimony.) These are the highest numbers since the City began keeping records of the homeless population more than three decades ago and the highest since the Great Depression of the 1930s. In addition, more than 1,000 families, including 1,600 children, sleep each night in the City’s domestic violence shelter system, administered by the New York City Human Resources Administration (HRA). Along with the worsening housing affordability crisis and the failures of Bloomberg-era homeless policies, domestic violence is one of the major causes of homelessness in New York City. Indeed, it is in many ways misleading to distinguish between families in the homeless shelter system and families in the domestic violence shelter system, since many more survivors of domestic violence actually reside in DHS-administered homeless shelters than in HRA-administered domestic violence shelters. Currently around one-in-four homeless families has a history of domestic violence. And DHS data shows that, in the current fiscal year, domestic violence was the second most common reason families sought shelter in the DHS system (22 percent of family shelter entrants) after evictions (31 percent). Clearly the need for permanent housing resources for families in shelter is more critical than ever. Fortunately, in response to the prior administration’s failure to address this slowly unfolding disaster the de Blasio administration has unveiled a plan that makes significant progress in providing permanent housing assistance to homeless families and domestic violence survivors. But more can and must be done. … Looking forward, here are the essential steps that the City must take to allocate more permanent housing resources to homeless families, including domestic violence survivors: 1. Allocate at least 2,500 NYCHA public housing apartments annually to families in shelters. The City should increase the allocation of NYCHA public housing apartments for homeless families and families residing in domestic violence shelters to 2,500 apartments/year, consistent with the best years of the Giuliani administration. 2. Restore HRA’s ability to access the priority referral code for NYCHA apartments. The City should restore HRA to the roster of City agencies empowered to designate families with the “N-0” priority code for NYCHA public housing. This is one immediate step the de Blasio administration can make so that families in domestic violence shelters can once again be given the best and quickest access to the stable housing they deserve. 3. Reform NYCHA admissions policies. The City should eliminate the Giuliani-Bloomberg “Working Family Preference” so families who work, but are still poor and trapped in shelters are given preference. In addition, NYCHA should address longstanding bureaucratic barriers that make it difficult for domestic violence survivors to access public housing through the “N-1” priority code. 4. Negotiate a new City-State agreement to create permanent supportive housing. As recommended by broad coalition of community groups and leaders who launched the Campaign 4 NY/NY Housing, the Mayor and Governor should sign an agreement to create 30,000 units of supportive housing over the next decade. [Source] The complete joint testimony is available here.
