Despite opposition from tenant and real estate groups alike, Mayor Eric Adams’ administration is taking the next steps towards raising the rent burden on longtime users of a housing voucher program.
Recipients of CityFHEPS vouchers contribute 30 percent of their income towards rent, while the Department of Social Services subsidizes the remainder. Under Adams’ proposal, those in the program for five or more years would have their contributions jump to 40 percent.
A hearing was held at City Hall on Friday regarding the proposed change to the CityFHEPS program, Spectrum News NY1 reported. The hearing and a public comment period are required before any amendment can be enacted.
“With rent increase, the price of groceries increase, utilities increase,” said one voucher holder. “With Medicaid being cut, Snap being cut, insurance, health insurance, how much increase and cutbacks can we take?”
Much of the debate around changing the policy centers on the cost of the CityFHEPS program versus the cost of stays in a homeless shelter.
A study by government watchdog group Citizens Budget Commission found that CityFHEPS is on pace to spend more than $1 billion to subsidize rent for 52,000 people this fiscal year, more than doubling the total from the 2023 fiscal year. The group also claims the program is more costly than shelters in the long term.
But Christine Quinn, chief executive officer of Women in Need, disputed those findings, telling the outlet that CityFHEPS costs the city roughly $75 per night for a voucher holder, versus closer to $200 per night for a shelter stay. Quinn argued the study assumed only one shelter visit when many families require multiple stays before finding stable housing.
The proposal prompted a rare coalition between tenant and landlord groups, who launched a letter-writing campaign to oppose the idea. Both factions benefit from the safety net CityFHEPS provides, even if the proposed change only affects a small percentage of voucher holders.
There’s no timeline on when a rule change may be approved or enacted.
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