News — Testimony
Testimony: With Uptick in Evictions, NYC Must Fully Fund Right to Counsel
In 2017, NYC became the first city in the country to implement a Right to Counsel law. The data shows that RTC has been extremely effective in bringing down eviction rates.
Testimony: The Economic Incentive for Expanding Fair Fares
New York City is failing to tap the full potential of Fair Fares. That’s because the current Fair Fares cut-off is too low and leaves out too many New Yorkers who still struggle every day to afford the fare.
Testimony: Defending and Upholding Right to Counsel
Our 2022 Unheard Third Survey shows that 15% of all tenants were targeted for eviction, the highest share in a decade.
Testimony: Pathways to Social Housing
Bills under consideration in New York City could act as pathways to social housing – by preserving public land for the public good, by offering communities the opportunity to purchase multi-family housing, by creating a public entity to hold property and facilitate social housing conversions, by strengthening tenants’ rights, and by expanding funding sources for low-income housing.
Testimony: Improving and Expanding CityFHEPS
Today, a record number of people are experiencing homelessness. While CityFHEPS can be a powerful tool against homelessness, the program is plagued with issues that must be addressed.
Testimony: In support of the Fair Chance for Housing Act
The Fair Chance for Housing Act is a bill to both lessen homelessness and boost racial equality, but it is also a public safety bill.
Testimony: Building Code Enforcement
The 2021 Housing and Vacancy Survey (HVS) showed a disturbing trend: the city’s housing stock is becoming both more expensive and more rundown. We spoke about 5 recommendations before the NYC Council Committee on Housing and Buildings.
Testimony: Rent Stabilization in Kingston
Kingston’s rental housing emergency is particularly severe. The state defines a housing emergency as a vacancy rate below 5 percent, and Kingston’s vacancy rate as of June 2022 was a staggeringly low 1.57 percent. This vacancy rate appears to be worsening since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic: in 2020, the vacancy rate was an already shockingly low 1.81 percent.
Testimony: Housing People Who Seek Asylum
New York City’s plan to house people seeking asylum in an area that is flood-prone, lacking in basic resources, and disconnected from the rest of the city is unconscionable. While this is a crisis manufactured by a broken immigration system that the city has no control over, we do have control over local housing policy, which can help mitigate some of its externalities.
Testimony: Oversight Hearings on The New York City Ferry System
In a positive development over the summer, the city decided to extend discounted ferry tickets to Fair Fare enrollees. However, it still leaves out many people, including students. Intro 236 seeks to make it easier for students enrolled in a city high school to use the ferry system by offering them the discounted fare.
Testimony: Public Comments on Congestion Pricing
CSS conducted an analysis in 2017 and again in March 2022 to study the impact of congestion pricing on outer-borough residents. Only 4 percent of outer-borough residents (Brooklyn, the Bronx, Queens, and Staten Island) would regularly pay the congestion charge.
Testimony: Patients Deserve Legal Representation in Civil Court
Testimony: Making CityFHEPS More Accessible
We know that well-funded rental assistance programs can act as a key mechanism for helping homeless New Yorkers leave the shelter system and find permanent homes. CityFHEPS is the city’s rental assistance program. And, while the city has made strides to improve the functionality of this program, there are a number of administrative, enforcement, and funding issues that continue to hinder it from being as effective as it could be.
Testimony: Housing Our Neighbors
Testimony: Solving Homelessness Through Housing and Social Supports
The choice is simple: We can spend our public money on maintaining homelessness through thousands more street sweeps, or we can spend our public money on housing and social supports.
Testimony: The Rent Guidelines Board Should Reject Calls For Rent Increase
Testimony: Amending the New York City Salary Range Law
Testimony: Housing Priorities and the FY23 Preliminary Budget
As New York City continues its recovery process, CSS housing analyst Oksana Mironova provides seven recommendations to the NYC Council Committee on Housing and Buildings.
Testimony: Low-Wage Immigrant Workers and the COVID-19 Recovery
Immigrants make up around 43 percent of the city’s four-million strong workforce. While they are employed in a wide range of industries, they comprise a majority of the frontline essential workers who continued to operate in-person throughout the pandemic.