STATE ADVOCACY ALERT:

Services funding for single adults, families, young adults and people with AIDS is set to be slashed in the state budget! Talk to your representatives and your local press about saving the 'support' in supportive housing; it saves money AND saves lives. For more information visit our 2010 State Budget Page

CITY ADVOCACY ALERT:

The Mayor's Executive Budget proposes drastic cuts to on-site HASA case managers in supportive housing, resulting in caseload increases of 50%. Call your City Council Member and ask them to restore this critical funding. For more information click here for a fact sheet.

Advocacy

The Network advocates for public policy positions that advance the growth and effectiveness of supportive housing. Our staff and members produce ongoing research and analysis to affect policy and budget decisions at the local, state and federal level, while also leading and participating in timely campaigns that promote and protect supportive housing as the most humane and cost-effective solution to ending chronic homelessness.

Recent Accomplishments

NYS POLICY & ADVOCACY

Successfully advocated for:

$1.25 million to be added to the NYS Office for Children and Family Services budget and $1.3 million to the NYS Department of Health budget to fully fund all new units of NY/NY III housing for youth aging out of foster care and chronically homeless individuals living with HIV/AIDS.
$4.4 million to be added to the NYS Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance budget to fully fund all existing SRO Support Service contracts across the state and provide new funding for residences opening their doors this year.
$9.4 million in critical homeless prevention funding.

Played an integral role in establishing the state’s first-ever supportive housing set-aside of federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits, tripling supportive housing’s share to 20% of the total allocation.

NYC POLICY & ADVOCACY

Successfully advocated for restorations in proposed cuts to HASA supportive housing! More
Gained commitments from the NYC Department of Buildings to identify and remedy issues that delay supportive housing residences from opening. Successfully advocated for the modification of the zoning challenge process to create less delays for developers.
Collaborated with the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) to establish a more efficient and cost-effective construction oversight process. Outcomes included the creation of a cost proposal flowchart, a commitment to more transparent cost determinations, and a set time frame for change order approvals.
As leadership of the NYC Coalition on the Continuum of Care, the Network helped create a new governing structure for the coalition, opened up lines of communication with the local HUD office, and secured a voice for the Continuum in local priority-setting for federal stimulus funding.
Helped shape NYC Continuum of Care's recommendations for HPRP funds

FEDERAL POLICY & ADVOCACY

Network testifies before Congress on Section Eight Voucher Reform Act (SEVRA); read testimony.

2009 budget: Helped pass the Homeless and Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act which make substantial improvements to McKinney-Vento Act, the primary source of federal funding for supportive housing.
Worked to ensure that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act contained adequate gap funding to fixed stalled tax credit projects as well as a substantial $1.5 billion investment in Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-housing.
Achieved funding increases for supportive housing in the FY 2009 HUD and HHS budgets.