To the Editor:

More than 100,000 New Yorkers are experiencing homelessness, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. In part, this is due to the housing crisis that is driving rents up and making it harder and harder for tenants to make their monthly payments.

According to Central Current, the number of evictions granted to landlords in Syracuse grew by about 35% from 2022 to 2023. This year, city court judges have already signed off on 470 eviction warrants, and a new report found that Syracuse has the tightest rental market in the state — meaning it’s harder to find an apartment here than in the New York City-area — and those who are evicted typically have nowhere else to go and often end up on the streets.

Since the vast majority of evictions are due to non-payment of rent, and the average amount of rent owed is roughly $2,000, we can prevent this important driver of homelessness with a relatively straightforward solution: the Housing Access Voucher Program, or HAVP. As lawmakers negotiate the final state budget — with ongoing disagreements over how to increase housing supply long term and other core proposals — HAVP is the only solution that will help families immediately. It is also supported by a broad coalition, from landlord groups to tenant advocates.

Evictions don’t just take a large human and financial toll on those who lose their homes; they also make it harder for displaced children to succeed in school and for adults to keep their jobs. Evictions also destabilize neighborhoods, which can harm public safety and the general quality of life. Research shows rental vouchers like HAVP reduce homelessness and housing instability, improve outcomes for children, and promote beneficial outcomes for family well-being, including halving intimate partner violence. People need a stable place to call home. In addition to stabilizing individuals and families, HAVP would provide financial stability to building owners, ensuring a steady stream of rental income from low-income tenants.

Federal Housing Choice Vouchers reduce the poverty rate for recipients by 43%. State and local rental assistance vouchers have a similarly stabilizing effect: in New York City, during fiscal year 2023, 81% of families with children who exited shelter did so with subsides, and those that exited with subsidies were 53 times less likely to return to shelter in the subsequent year compared to families who exited without assistance. Despite the wealth of evidence about the positive effects of rental assistance, there are not nearly enough federal and local vouchers to meet the need in New York.

Research by both the NYU Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy and WIN, the largest shelter provider for families in New York City, finds that HAVP would provide close to 13,000 households with vouchers, helping thousands of New Yorkers and their families move out of and avoid homelessness. WIN also found in their latest report that, at current funding levels, HAVP could reduce sheltered homelessness in Central New York by 38%.

We urge all sides to get HAVP across the finish line this year — and take a huge step toward tackling New York’s homelessness and housing crisis. We urge Gov. Kathy Hochul and the Legislature to include $250 million for HAVP in the adopted state budget.

Christine Quinn

President and CEO of WIN

New York City

State Sen. Rachel May

48th Senate District

Syracuse

WIN is the largest provider of shelter and supportive housing for New York City’s homeless families.