CONTACT:Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org 

BAD POLICY: VOCAL-NY CALLS OUT GOV. HOCHUL’S LOSE-LOSE HOUSING DEAL

NEW YORK — In response to the legislature and Governor Hochul closing in on a housing deal in the New York State Executive budget that excludes the Housing Access Voucher Program, VOCAL-NY released the following statement, attributable to Joseph Loonam, VOCAL-NY Housing Campaign Coordinator: 

“The housing plan currently being drafted by New York State lawmakers is far from a victory for progressives, and declaring it as such only highlights how out of touch Governor Hochul’s administration is with the needs of everyday New Yorkers. If lawmakers, tenants, and people experiencing homelessness from upstate and downstate think this housing deal is bad, it doesn’t make it a good compromise — it makes it bad policy.

Over 100,000 New Yorkers across the state are homeless, but this budget will not allocate one dollar to support them with securing permanent housing. Evictions are up 300% this year, but there is not one dollar to help people pay their rent and keep them in their homes. We are told rental assistance will not work because of the lack of housing supply, but this deliberately ignores upstate cities with thousands of unrented apartments.

The Housing Access Voucher Program has support from both houses of the legislature, coalitions representing tenants and homeless New Yorkers, and coalitions representing service providers and real estate, yet it’s been left out of the final budget. This is Governor Hochul’s third budget, and the third time she has ignored the demands of homeless New Yorkers, choosing instead to co-govern with the greedy real estate lobby.”

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