NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE RELEASES RECOMMENDATIONS TO REFORM NYCHA'S FAILING REPAIRS PROCESS AMID ONGOING HEAT AND HOT WATER OUTAGES

 

 Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams today released a series of recommendations aimed at reforming the inadequate and inefficient repairs process for the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA). The announcement came after the Public Advocate toured the homes of several tenants at Fort Independence Houses in the Bronx, where there have been extensive heat and hot water outages this winter. The Public Advocate has consistently named NYCHA as the worst landlord in New York City. 

“NYCHA is the worst landlord in the city – the heating and hot water outages at Fort Independence Houses and across the five boroughs are at once entirely unacceptable and entirely predictable given NYCHA’s history of mismanagement and chronic underfunding,” said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams after the tour. “The recommendations we are putting forth today to reform NYCHA’s repair process will help allow for better communication with and better conditions for tenants. The city has an obligation here and across the city to provide safe, quality housing– an obligation they fail to live up to far too often, and one that I believe these proposals are an important part of finally meeting.”

The process by which NYCHA records and redresses violations and tenant complaints is often slow and ineffective, with tenants left in the dark about the status of repairs or ongoing issues. In addition, when repairs are conducted, they are frequently through temporary solutions which quickly fail, often without adequate follow-up from the agency. 

In order to improve both the means by which violations are addressed and the communications NYCHA has with tenants about repairs, the Public Advocate proposed the following recommended reforms:

Create a grading system where the most serious cases are prioritized and get resolved within a shorter period of time. 

• This can be modeled after HPD’s classification system: 
• Class A - Non-hazardous
• Class B - Hazardous
• Class C - Immediately Hazardous

Tenants should sign off in agreement that work has been completed before a ticket is closed.

• The current ticketing system does not lead to a timely response to tenants’ urgent complaints. Often, they are closed and reopened without reason and without tenant knowledge.

Better inform and update residents of issues requiring lengthy repairs, beyond posting notices in the lobby with real community outreach. 

• Residents do not feel that NYCHA fully informs them of necessary repairs. NYCHA should hold town hall meetings with residents for periodic, transparent updates.

Investigate substandard repairs, including the contractors directly and hold them accountable. 

• NYCHA’s inability to track repairs can impact its work to manage problems, allocate resources, and conduct necessary changes. NYCHA needs to investigate all substandard repairs with a reliable tracker system.

Tenants who are converted to private management under Rental Assistance Demonstration need to be provided clear guidance on how to file complaints. 

• RAD, also known as Permanent Affordability Commitment Together (PACT) in New York City, shifts housing from Section 9 to Section 8 or a section that funds private landlords. Once under PACT, tenants no longer have access to NYCHA resources or federal oversight mechanisms. 
• Residents are sent between NYCHA, 311, and the management office with no solution.

Forensic audit of funds allocated and used for repairs

• In conjunction with investigating poor repairs, NYCHA must also conduct forensic audits of funds allocated and used for repairs. Without an adequate tracker of repairs to be made, it is hard for NYCHA to determine how to distribute funds for repairs.

The Public Advocate further announced that his office would be touring complexes in each of the five boroughs in the coming days and speaking with tenants about both the specific and citywide needs for change. NYCHA has historically faced crises of underfunding and mismanagement that create unacceptable conditions for thousands of tenants across the city.

View the full recommendations to reform the repair process here. Photos and video of the event will be made available here.