Requires shelter allowances be set at up to one hundred percent of the fair market rent for the local social services district

• Democratic28

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Brian Kavanagh says this is needed

Individuals receiving temporary assistance are provided with a monthly shelter allowance that can be used to cover their housing costs. The shelter allowance varies depending on household size, county of resi- dence and other factors and is based on a schedule set by the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (01DA). However, the allowance amounts have riot been updated in recent years and are inadequate to cover the actual cost of housing in New York State. The shelter allow- ance for adult-only households was last increased in 1988; for house- holds with children the shelter allowance was last increased in 2003. As a result, a three-person household with children in Essex County, for example, would be eligible to receive a maximum shelter allowance of $268 per month, while the fair market rent for a two-bedroom home in Essex county is $844. The fair market rent, an amount determined annually by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, is already used to deter- mine allowances for numerous other housing subsidy and benefits programs. In 2021, legislation was signed into law to increase the New York State Family Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement (FHEPS) program voucher to 1005 of fair market rent, providing families at risk of homelessness with a voucher that more closely reflects the actual cost of housing in their area. The shelter allowance amounts, as determined by IDA, are no longer adequate and are forcing families to use other allowances that should cover food and other necessities to help cover their housing costs. This legislation would help reduce hous- ing instability and homelessness by allowing shelter allowances to cover up to 100* of fair market rent for the individual's area.

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.