Testimony: Making CityFHEPS More Accessible
Samuel SteinOksana Mironova
Thank you to the New York City Council’s Committee of General Welfare for holding a hearing on issues impacting homeless New Yorkers. Our names are Sam Stein and Oksana Mironova and we are senior policy analysts at the Community Service Society of New York (CSS), a leading nonprofit that promotes economic opportunity for all New Yorkers. CSS uses research, advocacy, and direct services to champion a more equitable city and state.
We have been closely tracking New York’s housing landscape for decades. 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. These include:
- Eligibility: Many households need CityFHEPS vouchers, yet strict rules limit who qualifies. Undocumented New Yorkers are unjustly excluded from receiving CityFHEPS vouchers.
- Delays: It often takes months for someone with a CityFHEPS voucher to secure and move into an apartment. Minor mistakes cause entire applications to be denied or delayed, which forces households to stay in shelter for longer than they have to.
- Unfair rules: Unnecessary rules make it difficult for voucher holders to secure apartments. Under one rule, the city deducts a “utility allowance” from allowable rents, reducing the maximum rent a voucher holder’s apartment can charge, and limiting the apartments they can choose from. Another rule allows the city to reject apartments where the rent is deemed “unreasonable” in comparison to other rents in the immediate neighborhood. This comparison happens late in the review process, is not a legal requirement, and makes it extremely difficult for households to find apartments, particularly in a tight rental market.
- Discrimination: Many landlords do not want to accept vouchers, and therefore refuse to rent apartments to CityFHEPS households. This is called source of income (SOI) discrimination, which is illegal. Unfortunately, New York City lacks the resources needed to combat this problem. The NYC Human Rights Commission’s Source of Income Unit is supposed to represent voucher holders experiencing discrimination, but is still extremely understaffed.
- Poor apartment conditions: Landlords tend to do less upkeep and care for buildings where a majority of tenants have vouchers. This results in CityFHEPS households having to settle for substandard housing, particularly because there is nowhere they can go to complain, and because it is difficult to find alternatives.
In 2019, only 20 percent of New Yorkers who received CityFHEPS were able to secure housing, and the average shelter stay was 450 days. There are a number of things the legislature can do to make it easier for homeless New Yorkers to access and use CityFHEPS vouchers.
Councilmember Cabán’s Int 0229 would simplify the apartment search process for CityFHEPS voucher holders, by preventing DSS from deducting a utility allowance from their maximum monthly rent. The City Council should consider pursuing other legislative strategies to address issues with CityFHEPS.
In addition, other bills being discussed today would improve shelter conditions for all shelter residents. CSS supports Councilmember Ayala’s Intro 0092, which would improve shelter accessibility, Councilmember Ossé’s Intro 0276, which would provide de-escalation and trauma-informed care trainings for public facing DHS employees, and Public Advocate Williams’ Intro 0190, which would require DHS to produce a homeless bill of rights.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify. If you have any questions about our testimony or CSS’s research, please contact us at sstein@cssny.org and omironova@cssny.org.