CONTACT : Mariah McGough, mariah@vocal-ny.org

LAWMAKERS AND ADVOCATES RALLY ACROSS NYS TO DEMAND BUDGET FUNDING FOR THE HOUSING ACCESS VOUCHER PROGRAM

New York’s Growing Housing Crisis Has More Middle Class Families Facing Eviction, With Record Rates of Childhood Poverty and Homelessness

See Pictures From the Actions in NYC, Rochester, and Yonkers Here

NEW YORK — Today, VOCAL-NY held rallies in New York City, Rochester, and Yonkers to demand policies to end homelessness in the final state budget by including funding for the Housing Access Voucher program (HAVP).

“We need to get folks out of shelters and prevent them from becoming homeless in the first place” Said Noam Cohen, a leader with VOCAL-NY’s NYC Chapter. “HAVP could get me into permanent housing, giving me a chance to get my life started.” 

“If Governor Hochul had created the Housing Access Voucher program years ago, young mothers like me who were struggling with homelessness could have been spared from this destabilizing experience. I hope that we can count on Governor Hochul’s leadership so that we can end homelessness for children, individuals, and families across the state,” said Monika White, a member of VOCAL-NY’s Rochester Chapter. 

“We took action today to deliver a simple message to our state elected officials in Westchester: You can not pretend homelessness is not an issue in this community. We’re counting on you to tell the Governor to support common-sense, immediate solutions to the homelessness crisis, like the Housing Access Voucher Program!” said Ernest Williams, a member of VOCAL-NY’s Westchester Chapter. 

BACKGROUND:

In cities across New York, advocates are rallying alongside VOCAL-NY to demand the legislature and Governor prioritize funding to end homelessness in the final state budget. When asked about the HAVP recently, Governor Hochul has stated that she is focused on the construction of a modest amount of new units — but this fails to address the immediate needs of New Yorkers on the verge of eviction, living in the broken shelter system, or trying to survive on the streets.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s annual point-in-time survey, which estimated that more than 158,010 people across New York State experienced homelessness in 2024. Data from the NY State Technical and Educational Assistance Center for Homeless Students (NYS TEACHS) showed that over 155,000 children were homeless during the 2022-2023 school year – 35,000 of them living outside of NYC. Homelessness is a growing problem, particularly amongst children upstate, as rural regions have seen a shocking rise in youth homelessness of more than 1000% from 2014-2024. The driving force behind these increases continues to be non-payment evictions, and rising housing costs have meant higher and higher income earners are winding up in rental arrears. 

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