SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
With Rent Laws Set to Expire, New York City Tenants Demand State of Emergency
Jun 13, 2015
Housing advocates urged New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to declare a state of emergency if regulations protecting almost 1 million affordable apartments are allowed to expire. Lawmakers in Albany have only four days to renew the rent laws and tenant rights groups called on Cuomo to accept nothing less from the state legislature than an overhaul of the current rules.
"So many people in my neighborhood have been pushed out and evicted because of these weak rent laws," Flatbush Tenant Coalition member Jean Folkes said during a rally outside City Hall on Thursday. "Brooklyn is becoming more expensive than Manhattan. They are coming to take it away from us. I'm begging Governor Cuomo, 'Do the right thing.'"
New York City Council members who attended the rally said they are willing to take control of the city's rent-regulated apartments if state legislators fail to produce stronger protections for tenants.
"We cannot accept a straight extension," said City Councilman Jumaane Williams, who heads the Committee on Housing and Buildings. Williams promised that any legislation passed by the City Council would "absolutely strengthen the rent laws."
By declaring a state of emergency, Cuomo has the power to suspend the 1971 Urstadt Law, which prohibits the city from passing rent regulations that are stricter than the state's. With the Urstadt Law gone, the city government could impose its own, stronger rent laws.
"We want Cuomo to consider that many people, particularly low- and middle-income people, are going to be subject to displacement and uncertainty if the regulations expire," said Robert Desir, staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society, which has joined the fight to protect tenants. "That's what the rent laws are designed to protect against."
Cuomo warned in April that there would be "chaos in the real estate market" if rent regulations were not renewed. However, he argued that instability in Albany due to the federal corruption charges against former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos made it unlikely that lawmakers could pass serious reforms.
Cuomo's comments infuriated tenant advocates. They argue that extending the current regulations would be a win for predatory landlords who have exploited loopholes in the existing laws to move hundreds of thousands of apartments out of the city's affordable housing stock.
"At the same time that [Cuomo] claims it will be mayhem if the rent laws expire, he throws cold water on anything getting done in Albany because of the corruption and scandals that have existed in Albany. We find that cowardly," said Jonathan Westin, the executive director of New York Communities for Change.
Tenant activists have been trying for months to get Cuomo to support their campaign. They have staged almost weekly demonstrations directed at the governor. Last week, 55 protesters were arrested alongside almost a dozen city and state politicians for participating in a sit-in outside Cuomo's office in Albany.
Tenant groups and their allies vow to hold Cuomo responsible if rent regulations are not reformed.
"When the governor has wanted to pass things, he has been able to," said Councilman Corey Johnson, who was one of the politicians arrested last week. "We have just a few days for the governor to work with the legislative leaders to strengthen the rent laws. Tinkering around the edges is not good enough."
On Saturday, with just over a week left before the rent laws expire, Cuomo penned an op-ed in the Daily News in which he expressed support for the reforms advocated by tenant rights groups: Repealing laws that allow landlords to hike rents by making renovations or getting tenants to vacate their apartments. Cuomo also said he would like to get rid of vacancy decontrol, which allows property owners to deregulate apartments if they can raise the monthly rent above $2,500.
Protesters at City Hall on Thursday, however, found little comfort in Cuomo's sudden support. "The rent laws expire on Monday. Today is Thursday," said Delsenia Glover, campaign manager for the Alliance for Tenant Power. "We see no movement in Albany. So we think that this is a crisis situation for tenants in New York City. If the rent laws are not renewed, that means over 2 million tenants will just be out there floating."
Earlier Thursday morning, seven protesters were arrested outside Cuomo's Manhattan office. They blocked the entrance to the building, while calling on the governor to pass stronger rent laws.
"This is the mayhem that we're talking about," said Esteban Giron, a member of the Crown Heights Tenant Union about the most recent arrests. "This is the sheer need that people have and the anxiety that comes with not knowing what's going to happen to our apartments on Monday."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.
Alex Ellefson
Alex Ellefson is a freelance journalist living in Brooklyn. His work has appeared in The Indypendent, VICE Magazine, Alternet, Popular Resistance and the Jordan Times. Follow him on Twitter @2Perk.
affordable housinghousinghousing crisisinequalitynew york cityrenter protectionstenant protectionstenants' rights
Housing advocates urged New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to declare a state of emergency if regulations protecting almost 1 million affordable apartments are allowed to expire. Lawmakers in Albany have only four days to renew the rent laws and tenant rights groups called on Cuomo to accept nothing less from the state legislature than an overhaul of the current rules.
"So many people in my neighborhood have been pushed out and evicted because of these weak rent laws," Flatbush Tenant Coalition member Jean Folkes said during a rally outside City Hall on Thursday. "Brooklyn is becoming more expensive than Manhattan. They are coming to take it away from us. I'm begging Governor Cuomo, 'Do the right thing.'"
New York City Council members who attended the rally said they are willing to take control of the city's rent-regulated apartments if state legislators fail to produce stronger protections for tenants.
"We cannot accept a straight extension," said City Councilman Jumaane Williams, who heads the Committee on Housing and Buildings. Williams promised that any legislation passed by the City Council would "absolutely strengthen the rent laws."
By declaring a state of emergency, Cuomo has the power to suspend the 1971 Urstadt Law, which prohibits the city from passing rent regulations that are stricter than the state's. With the Urstadt Law gone, the city government could impose its own, stronger rent laws.
"We want Cuomo to consider that many people, particularly low- and middle-income people, are going to be subject to displacement and uncertainty if the regulations expire," said Robert Desir, staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society, which has joined the fight to protect tenants. "That's what the rent laws are designed to protect against."
Cuomo warned in April that there would be "chaos in the real estate market" if rent regulations were not renewed. However, he argued that instability in Albany due to the federal corruption charges against former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos made it unlikely that lawmakers could pass serious reforms.
Cuomo's comments infuriated tenant advocates. They argue that extending the current regulations would be a win for predatory landlords who have exploited loopholes in the existing laws to move hundreds of thousands of apartments out of the city's affordable housing stock.
"At the same time that [Cuomo] claims it will be mayhem if the rent laws expire, he throws cold water on anything getting done in Albany because of the corruption and scandals that have existed in Albany. We find that cowardly," said Jonathan Westin, the executive director of New York Communities for Change.
Tenant activists have been trying for months to get Cuomo to support their campaign. They have staged almost weekly demonstrations directed at the governor. Last week, 55 protesters were arrested alongside almost a dozen city and state politicians for participating in a sit-in outside Cuomo's office in Albany.
Tenant groups and their allies vow to hold Cuomo responsible if rent regulations are not reformed.
"When the governor has wanted to pass things, he has been able to," said Councilman Corey Johnson, who was one of the politicians arrested last week. "We have just a few days for the governor to work with the legislative leaders to strengthen the rent laws. Tinkering around the edges is not good enough."
On Saturday, with just over a week left before the rent laws expire, Cuomo penned an op-ed in the Daily News in which he expressed support for the reforms advocated by tenant rights groups: Repealing laws that allow landlords to hike rents by making renovations or getting tenants to vacate their apartments. Cuomo also said he would like to get rid of vacancy decontrol, which allows property owners to deregulate apartments if they can raise the monthly rent above $2,500.
Protesters at City Hall on Thursday, however, found little comfort in Cuomo's sudden support. "The rent laws expire on Monday. Today is Thursday," said Delsenia Glover, campaign manager for the Alliance for Tenant Power. "We see no movement in Albany. So we think that this is a crisis situation for tenants in New York City. If the rent laws are not renewed, that means over 2 million tenants will just be out there floating."
Earlier Thursday morning, seven protesters were arrested outside Cuomo's Manhattan office. They blocked the entrance to the building, while calling on the governor to pass stronger rent laws.
"This is the mayhem that we're talking about," said Esteban Giron, a member of the Crown Heights Tenant Union about the most recent arrests. "This is the sheer need that people have and the anxiety that comes with not knowing what's going to happen to our apartments on Monday."
Alex Ellefson
Alex Ellefson is a freelance journalist living in Brooklyn. His work has appeared in The Indypendent, VICE Magazine, Alternet, Popular Resistance and the Jordan Times. Follow him on Twitter @2Perk.
Housing advocates urged New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to declare a state of emergency if regulations protecting almost 1 million affordable apartments are allowed to expire. Lawmakers in Albany have only four days to renew the rent laws and tenant rights groups called on Cuomo to accept nothing less from the state legislature than an overhaul of the current rules.
"So many people in my neighborhood have been pushed out and evicted because of these weak rent laws," Flatbush Tenant Coalition member Jean Folkes said during a rally outside City Hall on Thursday. "Brooklyn is becoming more expensive than Manhattan. They are coming to take it away from us. I'm begging Governor Cuomo, 'Do the right thing.'"
New York City Council members who attended the rally said they are willing to take control of the city's rent-regulated apartments if state legislators fail to produce stronger protections for tenants.
"We cannot accept a straight extension," said City Councilman Jumaane Williams, who heads the Committee on Housing and Buildings. Williams promised that any legislation passed by the City Council would "absolutely strengthen the rent laws."
By declaring a state of emergency, Cuomo has the power to suspend the 1971 Urstadt Law, which prohibits the city from passing rent regulations that are stricter than the state's. With the Urstadt Law gone, the city government could impose its own, stronger rent laws.
"We want Cuomo to consider that many people, particularly low- and middle-income people, are going to be subject to displacement and uncertainty if the regulations expire," said Robert Desir, staff attorney at the Legal Aid Society, which has joined the fight to protect tenants. "That's what the rent laws are designed to protect against."
Cuomo warned in April that there would be "chaos in the real estate market" if rent regulations were not renewed. However, he argued that instability in Albany due to the federal corruption charges against former Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and former Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos made it unlikely that lawmakers could pass serious reforms.
Cuomo's comments infuriated tenant advocates. They argue that extending the current regulations would be a win for predatory landlords who have exploited loopholes in the existing laws to move hundreds of thousands of apartments out of the city's affordable housing stock.
"At the same time that [Cuomo] claims it will be mayhem if the rent laws expire, he throws cold water on anything getting done in Albany because of the corruption and scandals that have existed in Albany. We find that cowardly," said Jonathan Westin, the executive director of New York Communities for Change.
Tenant activists have been trying for months to get Cuomo to support their campaign. They have staged almost weekly demonstrations directed at the governor. Last week, 55 protesters were arrested alongside almost a dozen city and state politicians for participating in a sit-in outside Cuomo's office in Albany.
Tenant groups and their allies vow to hold Cuomo responsible if rent regulations are not reformed.
"When the governor has wanted to pass things, he has been able to," said Councilman Corey Johnson, who was one of the politicians arrested last week. "We have just a few days for the governor to work with the legislative leaders to strengthen the rent laws. Tinkering around the edges is not good enough."
On Saturday, with just over a week left before the rent laws expire, Cuomo penned an op-ed in the Daily News in which he expressed support for the reforms advocated by tenant rights groups: Repealing laws that allow landlords to hike rents by making renovations or getting tenants to vacate their apartments. Cuomo also said he would like to get rid of vacancy decontrol, which allows property owners to deregulate apartments if they can raise the monthly rent above $2,500.
Protesters at City Hall on Thursday, however, found little comfort in Cuomo's sudden support. "The rent laws expire on Monday. Today is Thursday," said Delsenia Glover, campaign manager for the Alliance for Tenant Power. "We see no movement in Albany. So we think that this is a crisis situation for tenants in New York City. If the rent laws are not renewed, that means over 2 million tenants will just be out there floating."
Earlier Thursday morning, seven protesters were arrested outside Cuomo's Manhattan office. They blocked the entrance to the building, while calling on the governor to pass stronger rent laws.
"This is the mayhem that we're talking about," said Esteban Giron, a member of the Crown Heights Tenant Union about the most recent arrests. "This is the sheer need that people have and the anxiety that comes with not knowing what's going to happen to our apartments on Monday."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.