“A potential backslide in 2025 would not only undermine our progress, but also stall momentum toward achieving long-term gender equity in political leadership at all levels of government.”
City Hall was supposed to begin reporting more details on how it removes homeless New Yorkers from public spaces, sharing data on where each sweep took place, the agencies involved, how many people were affected and the costs. But a month after the first due date, advocates and lawmakers are still waiting.
“The city is becoming increasingly harsh for the very constituency the mayor claims to care about: the underserved in the forgotten outreaches of the city’s neighborhoods.”
Federal law that protects the educational rights of homeless children and youth under 21 says young adults should be enrolled in school immediately, but the city is not meeting this requirement, advocates say. They report newly arrived immigrant youth being placed on waiting lists, told there are no spaces, or advised to take the General Educational Development (GED) high school equivalency test instead.
In his annual address Wednesday, his third since taking office in 2022, Mayor Eric Adams touched on plans for a “Tenant Protection Cabinet,” developing affordable housing on two dozen city-owned sites, and issuing new NYCHA Section 8 vouchers. But several advocates said the speech fell short in addressing the city’s homelessness crisis.
“We are now witnessing a new generation of Latino political representatives, many of whom have arrived in the halls of government with great potential and ambition. A few of them have even been mentioned as potential opponents to the current mayor in the 2025 municipal elections.”
“I am devastated by the abrupt, violent pulling of this program,” said Jonathan McLean, chief executive officer of the Center for Alternative Sentencing and Employment Services, at a City Hall rally Tuesday.
Steve Banks, who served as social services commissioner under former Mayor Bill de Blasio, is returning to a familiar posture—opposing City Hall in litigation over the city’s unique shelter rights for the homeless, which Mayor Eric Adams has sought to weaken in recent months.
The mayor has argued that the bills will be too costly, and that an expanded pool will make it harder for existing voucher holders in a city with too few low-cost apartments. But the Council has pushed back consistently, disputing the mayor’s cost estimate and accusing him of shortsightedness.
Advocates hoped Adams would kick off his first term by appointing a deputy mayor for housing and homelessness—ensuring that previously siloed agencies would report to the same person. He didn’t, but departing administration member Jessica Katz was the next best thing, they say.
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