v There are over 150,000 homeless children in NYS

v More than 80,000 households are on the brink of homelessness in NYS

Keeping people in their homes will save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars

v Shelter Allowances: “SHALL BE ADEQUATE to enable the father, mother or other relative to bring up the child properly, having regard for the physical, mental and moral well-being of such child...

v and “…SHALL PROVIDE for the support, maintenance and needs of one or both parents if in need, and IN THE HOME.”

NYS Social Services Law Section 350

“A schedule establishing assistance levels so low that it forces large numbers of families with dependent children into homelessness does not meet the statutory standard.”

Jiggetts v. Grinker, 75 NY 2d 411 - NY: Court of Appeals 1990

Home Stability Support 2

v Prior to 1975, the rents of households on public assistance were paid in full.

v When the shelter allowance was created in 1975, it was originally designed to pay the full rents of the vast majority of households on public assistance.

v The shelter allowance schedule is a series of state regulatory limits on rent assistance based on district, family size, and whether heat is included in rent.

v Currently, 171,000 households receive a shelter allowance.

Home Stability Support 3

v The shelter allowance has failed to keep up with the rising cost of housing.

v For households of three including children, the shelter allowance ranges from $264 to $447 per month.

v The actual cost of housing for two-bedroom apartments, which are suitable for households of three, ranges from $658 to $1608 per month.

v Two-thirds of public assistance households living in private housing have rents that exceed their shelter allowances.

Home Stability Support 4

Home Stability Support 5

Coun

ty

Curr

ent S

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r Al

low

ance

for

3

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on

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HU

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m

unit

Alba

ny C

ount

y$3

09$1

,005

Alle

gany

Cou

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$273

$658

Broo

me

Coun

ty$2

90$7

29Ca

ttar

augu

s Cou

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$269

$693

Cayu

ga C

ount

y$2

90$7

61Ch

auta

uqua

Cou

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$285

$674

Chem

ung

Coun

ty$2

83$8

95Ch

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go C

ount

y$2

64$6

80Cl

into

n Co

unty

$275

$782

Colu

mbi

a Co

unty

$290

$923

Cort

land

Cou

nty

$281

$741

Dela

war

e Co

unty

$274

$729

Dutc

hess

Cou

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$412

$1,2

71Er

ie C

ount

y$3

01$7

55Es

sex

Coun

ty$2

68$8

44Fr

ankl

in C

ount

y$2

59$7

47Fu

lton

Coun

ty$2

72$7

26Ge

nese

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unty

$294

$750

Gree

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ount

y$2

81$8

82Ha

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ount

y$2

67$6

58He

rkim

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ount

y$2

75$7

41Je

ffer

son

Coun

ty$2

76$1

,087

Lew

is Co

unty

$279

$683

Livi

ngst

on C

ount

y$3

07$8

63M

adiso

n Co

unty

$304

$809

Mon

roe

Coun

ty$3

43$8

63M

ontg

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y Co

unty

$283

$735

Nas

sau

Coun

ty$4

45$1

,608

New

Yor

k Ci

ty$4

00$1

,571

Nia

gara

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$294

$755

One

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Coun

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87$7

41O

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Coun

ty$3

03$8

09O

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ount

y$3

08$8

63O

rang

e Co

unty

$421

$1,2

71O

rlean

s Cou

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$302

$863

Osw

ego

Coun

ty$3

00$8

09O

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$280

$823

Putn

am C

ount

y$4

41$1

,571

Rens

sela

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y$2

96$1

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Rock

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Cou

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$434

$1,5

71Sa

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16$1

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Sche

nect

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Coun

ty$3

11$1

,005

Scho

harie

Cou

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$286

$1,0

05Sc

huyl

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ount

y$2

75$6

58Se

neca

Cou

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$288

$716

St. L

awre

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Coun

ty$2

81$7

63St

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unty

$271

$771

Suff

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Coun

ty$4

47$1

,608

Sulli

van

Coun

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97$8

98Ti

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Coun

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85$7

29To

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17$1

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Ulst

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y$3

50$1

,146

War

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Coun

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72W

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$295

$872

Way

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y$3

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63W

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,510

Wyo

min

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$279

$675

Yate

s Cou

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$286

$691

Aver

age

$309

$911

v More than 82,000 households in private housing have rents that are 1.5 times or more than their shelter allowances.

v This means that roughly half of those receiving shelter allowances without other housing subsidies are placed at serious risk of becoming homeless due to shelter allowances that are far below the actual cost of housing.

v This includes nearly 21,000 households whose rents are more than 2.5 times their shelter allowances, and who will be homeless without intervention.

Home Stability Support 6

Home Stability Support 7

Oct

-15

Stru

ggli

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M

ake

Ends

M

eet

N

umbe

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H

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hold

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Ren

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Num

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of

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and

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Inte

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Allo

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1,598

1,334

493

Alle

gany

Cou

nty

268

180

42Br

oom

e Co

unty

2,326

1,913

607

Catta

raug

us C

ount

y375

234

66Ca

yuga

Cou

nty

439

349

93Ch

auta

uqua

Cou

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1,645

1,235

306

Chem

ung

Coun

ty266

218

66Ch

enan

go C

ount

y180

137

34Cl

into

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unty

397

343

171

Colu

mbi

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217

172

75Co

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unty

341

255

61D

elaw

are

Coun

ty73

5818

Dut

ches

s Cou

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661

500

127

Erie

Cou

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7,896

6,181

1,660

Esse

x Co

unty

5338

11Fr

ankl

in C

ount

y263

218

72Fu

lton

Coun

ty177

147

58G

enes

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ount

y137

9425

Gre

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Coun

ty210

176

63H

amilt

on C

ount

y6

61

Her

kim

er C

ount

y259

206

81Je

ffer

son

Coun

ty464

409

191

Lewi

s Cou

nty

3531

16Li

ving

ston

Cou

nty

411

326

94M

adis

on C

ount

y245

213

68M

onro

e Co

unty

8,819

7,234

1,320

Mon

tgom

ery

Coun

ty345

308

101

Nas

sau

Coun

ty2,782

1,874

689

Nia

gara

Cou

nty

1,663

1,306

352

One

ida C

ount

y2,604

2,167

643

Ono

ndag

a Cou

nty

3,623

2,933

867

Ont

ario

Cou

nty

319

263

65O

rang

e Co

unty

1,452

1,199

272

Orle

ans C

ount

y386

302

73O

sweg

o Co

unty

869

663

129

Ots

ego

Coun

ty49

3720

Putn

am C

ount

y25

2011

Rens

sela

er C

ount

y900

805

324

Rock

land

Cou

nty

583

355

103

St. L

awre

nce

Coun

ty706

557

159

Sara

toga

Cou

nty

9070

33Sc

hene

ctad

y Co

unty

902

836

262

Scho

harie

Cou

nty

6659

12Sc

huyl

er C

ount

y117

8424

Sene

ca C

ount

y114

9823

Steu

ben

Coun

ty418

359

95Su

ffol

k Co

unty

1,987

1,368

604

Sulli

van

Coun

ty277

231

90Ti

oga C

ount

y255

210

89To

mpk

ins C

ount

y248

179

53U

lste

r Cou

nty

876

714

187

War

ren

Coun

ty81

6521

Was

hing

ton

Coun

ty161

137

62W

ayne

Cou

nty

331

256

66W

estc

hest

er C

ount

y1,500

899

462

Wyo

min

g Co

unty

9269

11Ya

tes C

ount

y65

5225

New

Yor

k Ci

ty54,013

41,628

9,174

Tota

ls105,660

82,310

20,920

Home Stability Support 8

v Rent Supplements are additional support to help people pay their rent…because: THE RENT IS TOO DAMN HIGH!!!

v Due to woefully inadequate shelter allowances, in 2003 NYS authorized local social service districts to create rent supplements to be used on top of shelter allowances.

v Currently, out of 58 social services districts, only twelve districts and New York City have opted to provide these rent supplements.

v Roughly 15,000 households receive rent supplements in addition to their shelter allowances.

v The vast majority of these rent supplements are inadequate.

v Most districts have complicated eligibility restrictions that prevent the vast majority of households from accessing these rent supplements. Those fleeing domestic violence or living in hazardous conditions are particularly disadvantaged by these restrictions.

Home Stability Support 9

Home Stability Support 10

v Homelessness has grown and will continue to grow exponentially due to wholly inadequate shelter allowances and rent supplements.

v We are in the midst of the worst crisis of homelessness since the Great Depression.

v NYS informed the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that over 19,000 more people enter homelessness per year than exit homelessness each year.

v More than 60,000 people sleep in shelters each night in New York City.

v Over 7,500 more people live in shelters from Long Island to Western New York.

v Thousands more people sleep on the streets, in abandoned buildings and in makeshift campsites.

v Taxpayers spend BILLIONS of dollars to cover the avoidable costs of this crisis.

Home Stability Support 11

v “Taxpayers fund over $1 Billion” for the statewide shelter system. (Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, State of the State, 2016)

v Hundreds of millions of additional dollars are spent statewide every year for the homeless:

ØPrograms and Shelters for Runaway and Homeless YouthØDomestic Violence Shelters and ServicesØSoup kitchensØEmergency Room utilizationØLaw enforcement costsØRent ArrearsØHousing Court costs

Home Stability Support 12

vA new statewide rent supplement for families and individuals facing eviction, homelessness, or loss of housing due to domestic violence or hazardous conditions.

vHome Stability Support will replace all existing optional rent supplements.

Home Stability Support 13

Cost Comparisons Demonstrate Significant Savings

v New York City data shows there would be a significant savings with HSS (see below).v New York State does not report Temporary Housing (shelter) costs for districts outside

of New York City.v Based on data that is available for some districts, significant savings would also be

achieved in the counties outside of New York City as detailed in the next slide. v For every household currently receiving locally funded temporary housing assistance

(shelter) or rent supplements that will receive state-funded HSS, there will be 100 percent cost savings to the locality.

New York City

v HSS would cost $11,224 per year for a household of three in New York City.v Temporary Housing (shelter) costs $38,460 for a family with children in New York City.

= Net Savings $27,236 per household per yearv HSS would cost $9,865 per year for an individual in NYC.v Temporary Housing (shelter) costs $25,925 for an individual in NYC.

= Net Savings $16,060 per person per year

(continued)

Home Stability Support 14

Suburban Example: Westchester Countyv HSS would cost $10,296 per year for a household of three in Westchester County.v Temporary Housing (shelter) costs $57,040 for a family with children in Westchester County.

= Net Savings $46,744 per household per yearv HSS is estimated to cost $7,320 per year for an individual or couple in Westchester County.v Temporary Housing (shelter) is estimated to cost $36,000 for an individual or couple in

Westchester County.= Net Savings $28,680 per person or couple per year

Upstate Urban Example: Monroe Countyv HSS would cost $4,687 per year for a household of three in Monroe County.v Temporary Housing (shelter) costs $32,400 for a family with children in Monroe County.

= Net Savings $27,713 per household per yearv HSS would cost $2,784 per year for an individual in Monroe County.v Temporary Housing (shelter) costs $10,950 for an individual in Monroe County.

= Net Savings $8,166 per person per year

Rural Example: Columbia Countyv HSS is estimated to cost $4,800 per year for an individual or couple in Columbia County.v Temporary Housing (shelter) is estimated to cost $27,000 for an individual or couple in

Columbia County.= Net Savings $22,200 per person or couple per year

Home Stability Support 15

v Three key areas of savings: Reduced shelter utilization, other homeless services cost savings, and prevention of future evictions.Ø REDUCED SHELTER UTILIZATION: Moving very large numbers of individuals and

families out of homeless shelters would save hundreds of millions in temporary housing costs, allowing communities to close shelters as demand falls.

Ø OTHER HOMELESS SERVICE COST SAVINGS: Preventing very large numbers of individuals and families from becoming homeless will save hundreds of millions of dollars in costs avoided for soup kitchens, emergency room visits, law enforcement and housing court costs, and programs and shelters for runaway and homeless youth.

Ø PREVENTION OF FUTURE EVICTIONS: A recent analysis of the impact of preventing 5,237 evictions for households likely to enter shelters commissioned by the NYC Bar Association found that savings of $251 million per year could be realized in New York City alone.

Home Stability Support 16

v HSS will be 100 percent Federally and State-funded, and will provide additional local mandate relief by replacing all existing optional rent supplements.

v HSS will bridge the difference between the shelter allowance and 85 PERCENT of the local Fair Market Rent. Localities will have the option to further raise HSS up to 100 percent of the Fair Market Rent, at local expense.

v Roughly 80,000 households would be eligible initially including:Ø Those who are homeless in a shelter, on the street, or doubled-up living in another

household.Ø Approximately 3,000 households fleeing domestic violence or living with hazardous

conditions in their homes.Ø Approximately 7,000 households on public assistance facing eviction.Ø Households presently receiving a rent supplement.

v To encourage employment, HSS will include a one-year transitional benefit for households that increase their earnings enough to leave public assistance.

v Landlords will not be required to take tenants to housing court in order for tenants to qualify for HSS.

v HSS will include a differential for housing that does not include heat in the monthly rent.

Home Stability Support 17

v There are over 150,000 homeless children in NYS

v Nearly 80,000 households are on the brink of homelessness in NYS

Keeping people in their homes will save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars

Home Stability Support 18