Seven local organizations sought permission to file an amicus brief in support of the City Council and Legal Aid Society’s lawsuit, which is looking to compel the Adams administration to implement a package of laws to expand eligibility for CityFHEPS, a rental subsidy program.
Government
City Hall Digs In Against Rental Voucher Expansion
Emma Whitford |
Mayor Eric Adams argued in new court filings that his administration has special authority as an “arm of the state”—part of a lawsuit that the Legal Aid Society filed in February over City Hall’s refusal to implement a suite of laws to expand access to city-funded rental vouchers.
CITY VIEWS: OPINIONS and ANALYSIS
Opinion: Bloated Police Budgets Don’t Make Us Safe
Cheyenne Lee |
“The City Council must have the courage to use the budget to hold the NYPD accountable.”
Government
Right to Shelter Settlement Enforces Unequal System, Critics Say
Emma Whitford |
While defenders see the preservation of shelter rights in the long term, opponents are raising implementation concerns. They say the agreement enforces a recent trend of unequal treatment based on when a person arrived, and from where.
Government
PODCAST: ¿Cómo se resolvió la demanda de varios estados republicanos contra el programa ‘parole’?
Daniel Parra |
En enero de 2023, la administración Biden anunció un nuevo programa de “parole”, conocido oficialmente como Procesos para Cubanos, Haitianos, Nicaragüenses y Venezolanos (CHNV), que permitía a hasta 30.000 personas de Cuba, Haití, Nicaragua y Venezuela emigrar legalmente a EE.UU. cada mes, siempre que tuvieran un patrocinador financiero en el país.
Education
Opinion: The Harmful Impact of Invasive Child Welfare Investigations
Dawne Mitchell, Melissa Friedman and Daniella Rohr |
“These rates of over-investigation are state-sanctioned family policing. Even where investigations are warranted and allegations are substantiated, the investigative process is often coercive and traumatic, indelibly harming the children the investigations intend to protect.”
Government
NYC Narrows Re-Sheltering Rights for Recently-Arrived Immigrants
Emma Whitford |
The Coalition for the Homeless reached a settlement with the City of New York Friday, adding new emergency terms to the 1981 decree that paved the way for the city’s unique right to a shelter bed.
Health and Environment
NYC Housing Calendar, March 4-11
Jeanmarie Evelly |
City Limits rounds up the latest housing and land use-related events, public hearings and upcoming affordable housing lotteries that are ending soon.
Housing and Homelessness
Legal Organization Workers On Strike Say NYC Tenants Deserve More
Emma Whitford |
While Mobilization for Justice’s staff union has particular grievances—they say their employer has failed to stay competitive with its peers—many members are experiencing a strain familiar to tenant lawyers citywide.
Government
‘Turn this Ship Around’: NYCHA Tenants and Leaders Face Fallout of Bribery Scandal
Tatyana Turner |
A joint City Council hearing Tuesday tackled a multiyear bribery scandal that affected more than 100 developments across the city. “These charges are unacceptable and robbed the residents of NYCHA of getting more important jobs done,” one tenant leader testified.
Bronx
Opinion: Bronx Building Collapse is a Wake-Up Call
David B. Lever |
“It will happen again. It’s not a matter of if, but when. The average building age in New York City is around 90 years, and we’re grappling with a shortage of building inspectors as well as an ongoing housing crisis—giving building owners little to no incentive to address violations.”