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NYSYD Endorses Home Stability Support

The New York State Young Democrats (NYSYD) is proud to join an ever-growing broad and bipartisan chorus of elected officials, labor unions, and community leaders in supporting the Home Stability Support (HSS) – a proposal which aims to bring an end to the homeless crisis in New York State put forward by New York State Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (D-Queens).

HSS aims to be be a new statewide rent supplement for individuals and families eligible for public assistance benefits as well as for those who are facing eviction, homelessness, or loss of housing due to domestic violence or hazardous living conditions. HSS will replace all current city, state, and federal rent supplements and will be fully paid for by state and federal government. Further, this more-expansive program will save taxpayer dollars. According to current estimates, it costs $38,460 per year to house family of three in a homelessness shelter in New York City; however, HSS is estimated only cost $11,224.

In 1975, shelter allowances were created as a means to pay the rents of most of households using public assistance, factoring-in locale, family size, and if heating is included in rent. However, those allowances failed to keep up with the rising cost of housing. New York State has over 150,000 homeless children and over 80,000 families on the brink of homelessness, which amounts to billions of dollars being spent by local, state, and federal governments on essential services. Finding concrete solutions to homelessness has become a moral and fiscal obligation for every New Yorker.

Especially troubling is the impact homelessness has on young people. According to the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, runaway and homeless youth (RHY) often do not complete their education, which in turn, hurts their ability to seek employment. Further, a new report by the Institute for Children, Poverty and Homelessness shows that RHY are more likely to have health problems, be bullied, attempt suicide, be sexually exploited and abused, and abuse drugs and alcohol while also being less likely to graduate high school.

“Homelessness is an issue that affects everyone, especially young people,” said Mike Corbett, President of the New York State Young Democrats. “Given the number of youth that are either homeless or are on the brink, it is imperative that we act now. That is why I believe Home Stability Support is a good plan, not only because will end up saving taxpayer dollars, but more importantly because it will save lives as well.”

“I am proud to have the New York State Young Democrats endorse the Home Stability Support plan. I look forward to working with this new generation of leaders to help some of our most vulnerable New Yorkers,” said Assemblyman Andrew Hevesi (A.D. 28).

The New York State Young Democrats calls on its representatives in Albany to pass Home Stability Support as a concrete way to end the state’s homelessness crisis and, in turn, help flourish the Empire State’s economic outlook.

The New York State Young Democrats is the official youth arm of the New York State Democratic Committee. It represents Democrats between the ages of 16-36 living in all of New York’s 62 counties.