Social justice leaders urge Albany to pass ‘Good Cause’ eviction bill

Advocates marched in Albany last year in support of new rent laws. Photo via Housing Justice For All

By David Brand

A group of New York City social justice leaders are urging the state’s top three elected officials to enact a measure giving every tenant in New York the right to renew their lease during the COVID-19 outbreak.

In a letter to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie Wednesday, six nonprofit administrators cited the likely rise in homelessness that will result from the devastating economic impact of the pandemic.

“Landlords of non-regulated housing units are under no legal obligation to offer or renew a lease,” they wrote. “This kind of housing instability is unacceptable during a global health crisis where New York City is the epicenter.”

The legislation they favor, known as the Good Cause Eviction bill, would force landlords to offer a lease renewal to tenants who pay their rent and comply with their existing leases, while also curbing rent hikes. The bill was a priority for progressive organizations and lawmakers at the beginning of the session after it failed to pass amid sweeping rent reforms last year. 

The letter was drafted by the top attorney in the Legal Aid Society’s civil practice, Adriene Holder and signed by the Community Service Society Senior Housing Policy Analyst Victor Bach; Community Voices Heard Executive Director Afua Atta-Mensah; Citizen Action of New York Housing Justice Campaign Manager Rebecca Gerrard; Make the Road New York Co-Executive Director Javier Valdés and New York Communities for Change Executive Director Jonathan Westin.

After a two-month hiatus, state lawmakers have resumed the final days of the legislative session and considering a flurry of last-minute legislation. 

“The current pandemic will surely exacerbate” housing insecurity, the seven nonprofit officials wrote, “leading to additional evictions, and more New Yorkers facing homelessness — a crisis already at its brim.” 

“We must act now to prevent this inequity from compounding once the pandemic subsides,” they added.