New York State Fails to Deliver Help for Tens of Thousands of New Yorkers Trying to Escape Homelessness and Protect Thousands More Imminently at Risk of Losing their Homes As Growing COVID-19 Crisis Exposes the Vulnerability of Those Living Without the Privacy and Security of a Home, Now More Than Ever, Homeless New Yorkers and Those At Risk Need Housing ALBANY, NY — The following statement is in response to Governor Cuomo and the State Legislature failing to include budget measures to curb New York State’s record-breaking homelessness crisis, which left more than 250,000 New Yorkers homeless in the 2018-2019 school year. Prior to the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 80,000 households in the state were on the brink of homelessness. “The only way we will begin to address our record homelessness crisis is by implementing long-term, preventative, morally sound solutions to keep New Yorkers in their homes, and today our State leaders failed to provide that assistance. Home Stability Support (HSS) would have provided thousands of families and at-risk New Yorkers the help they need to maintain permanent housing, prevent eviction, and move out of shelters, saving taxpayers millions. By omitting Home Stability Support from the final budget, Governor Cuomo and our State leaders have once again, and at an unprecedented moment of skyrocketing need, missed a critical opportunity to help end the cycle of homelessness. Although the HSS bill received broad, statewide bi-partisan support, the reality is that we all will have to work even harder to make Governor Cuomo understand that in order to fight the homelessness crisis, we must tackle the problem at the root: the lack of affordable housing. The Coalition for the Homeless and thousands of our allies will continue to fight for our homeless neighbors and New Yorkers at risk, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic sparks a new wave of displacement and adds suddenly to the ranks of those without a stable home, leaving them even more vulnerable,” said Shelly Nortz, Deputy Executive Director for Policy at Coalition for the Homeless. ### BACKGROUND: More than 250,000 New Yorkers were homeless in the 2018-2019 school year, including over 150,000 children. This number exceeds the populations of every city in the state with the exception of New York City. More than 80,000 households in the state are on the brink of homelessness. Housing allowances for poor New Yorkers are not adequate to help families receiving public assistance move from shelters to stable homes — that’s where HSS comes in. HSS would bridge the difference between incomes and rents to enable homeless and nearly homeless New Yorkers to stay out of the shelter system and in secure homes. Given that market rents are too high for many individuals and families, HSS would help fill the void between available resources and housing costs. HSS is backed by 129 members of the NYS Assembly, 37 members of the NYS Senate, dozens of local officials and Congressional Representatives, and hundreds of advocates, faith leaders, and other supporters. Homelessness costs taxpayers billions of dollars annually, but smart solutions like HSS can actually save tax dollars while also helping to dramatically reduce the demand for shelter by as much as 60 percent.
