Sen. Pam Helming says the state’s inability to get a budget done is going to have an impact on small businesses and landlords.
The delay means additional waiting for landlords who are anxiously awaiting distribution of $1.3 billion in federal housing money.
Those funds were intended to help tenants who were behind on rent due to the coronavirus pandemic- and serve as an important stop-gap for landlords.
“There is no excuse for further delaying this critical relief for tenants and landlords that have experienced real economic hardship throughout this pandemic. This is a failure of state government and a disservice to these New Yorkers. Release the money. Get it done,” said Helming, a ranking member of the Senate Committee on Housing, Construction, and Community Development.
The federal dollars allocated to New York State, per federal guidelines, must be used by September 30, or the U.S. Department of the Treasury is obligated to claw these funds back and reallocate them to other states. Helming said the State Legislature must step up and intervene on behalf of tenants and landlords.
“New York has received more than a billion dollars in federal funding. Yet bureaucratic inaction is delaying its distribution and small landlords and their tenants continue to suffer. Small property owners depend on the few units they own for their livelihoods, their children’s education, their retirement. These delays, coupled with the eviction ban, will raise long-term housing costs for renters and prolong much needed maintenance essential to preserving affordable housing in our communities,” added Helming. “Due to the state’s inaction and the failure to enact an on-time budget, property owners and tenants will be waiting until at least mid-summer for relief. This is unacceptable.”
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