The New York City Council appealed on Tuesday a recent state court ruling that blocked its attempt to force Mayor Eric Adams to implement an expansion of a city housing voucher program.
The legal move is the Council’s latest attempt to compel City Hall to implement the package of legislation it passed back in February that would add eligibility for housing-voucher programs including Family Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (FHEPS), also known as CityFHEPS.
In August, a Manhattan Supreme Court judge ruled that the Council did not have the legal authority to expand access to the CityFHEPS voucher program because state law preempts legislative bodies like the City Council from making changes to the eligibility of social service policies like CityFHEPS.
The Council filing argues that the judge behind the August decision misunderstood state social services law — and in so doing, posed a danger to decades of rulings involving government precedent.
“The City Council has a long and established track record of legislating on social services-related issues, and the lower court’s ruling is wrong on the law and simply ignores this history which stretches back decades,” wrote Robert Desir, staff attorney at The Legal Aid Society, which filed the appeal with the Council.
Along with filing the appeal, the Council created a website that tracks the number of eviction cases filed and increases in the Department of Homeless Services’ (DHS) shelter population under Mayor Adams’ tenure. As of Oct. 1, it lists 27,555 eviction cases that have been filed, yet the DHS shelter population has increased by 42,267 people since 2022.
“The Council used its clearly established lawmaking powers to enact CityFHEPS Reform Laws that remove barriers to accessing housing vouchers for low-income residents at risk of eviction and experiencing homelessness,” said Council Speaker Adrienne Adams in a statement. “The Administration’s refusal to fulfill its duty to implement the laws has inflicted harmful consequences at a time when New Yorkers need housing security and stability.”
The legislative package is aimed at helping people move out of the shelter system and into permanent housing; it included a bill raising income eligibility from 200% of the federal poverty level to 50% of the area median income.
“As a government, we owe it to New Yorkers to fully implement these laws so that eligible residents can secure stable and safe housing,” said Deputy Speaker Diana Ayala.
A spokesperson for City Hall touted that the Adams administration has helped over 30,000 households exit the shelter system using CityFHEPS and other programs since taking Jan. 1, 2022, but pointed out that 10,000 households are still trying to use their CityFHEPS vouchers to find permanent housing in the midst of a “tight housing market.”
“We have been successful in this implementation thanks to improvements and investments we’ve made to CityFHEPS, including lifting the 90-day shelter rule, increasing staffing, and expanding eligibility and access,” said the City Hall spokesperson. “The trial court agreed with us that these laws went beyond the City Council’s legislative authority, and the Law Department will review the next steps. We remain committed to working to connect New Yorkers in need with safe, affordable, permanent housing.”
