By:  Hadassa Kalatizadeh

Lawmakers have long been advocating nixing the three-month waiting period that homeless people need to spend in city shelters before qualifying for a housing voucher.  Proponents say bypassing the rule would help free up beds in the shelter system to make more room for migrants.  As reported by the NY Post, advocates in the city council have also argued that this would save the city money, since vouchers cost less than shelter stays. At the end of May, the New York City Council successfully passed a series of bills which would expand the Big Apple’s housing voucher system.  Mayor Eric Adam’s administration has been staunchly opposing the package of bills, saying they would do “significant harm to the most vulnerable”, though the vote’s impressive margins (with 41-7 voting in favor) won’t allow Hizzoner to veto.

On Monday, the NY Post reported that Mayor Adam’s administration has proposed to use its powers to suspend the controversial 90-day rule.  The proposal is reportedly a compromise, hoping to keep the city council from pushing through with the larger package of legislation.  “This administration is very good at finding loopholes and ways to circumvent the City Council and the law, so I’m not surprised,” said Councilwoman Diana Ayala (D-Manhattan/Bronx), who chairs the committee that oversees the city’s response to homelessness.  A key sponsor of the bill, she added, “The entire package needs to be signed into law.”  The package also includes a law to allow New Yorkers at risk for eviction to apply for a housing voucher, increases the income cut-offs for the program, and it would prevent landlords from deducting the cost of utility bills from a voucher.  “It would really be unfortunate if theMayor chose to veto the bills that help New Yorkers leave the shelter system,” said Council Speaker Adrienne Adams (D-Queens).

City Hall has been at odds with lawmakers, publicly calling the measures “an attempt to force a tax increase” for city residents. Mayor Adams’ administration has estimated that the four bills would cost the city over$17 billion over the next five years, and could actually make it harder for homeless persons to secure a voucher, because there will be more competition –including from people who already have homes.

The wave of migrants into the city from the Southern borders has inundated the city’s shelters, with more than a record of 81,000 people in shelters, per the Post. City Hall is now hoping that the mayor making the administrative rule change himself to nix the 90-day requirement, will put down the other parts of the package by locking down enough votes to uphold a veto.  “No announcement is confirmed until we make it, but since day one of this administration, Mayor Adams has worked to shelter New Yorkers experiencing homelessness and connect our city’s residents with more permanent housing,” said City Hall press secretary Fabien Levy.  “The City Council’s package of bills, however, does the opposite — making it harder for New Yorkers experiencing homelessness to exit shelter to permanent housing.”