Statement of Comptroller Brad Lander on City’s Plan to Limit Shelter Stays to 60 Days

 

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander released the following statement in response to the Mayor’s plan to impose a 60-day limit on adult shelter stays:

“The Mayor’s announcement today doesn’t just undermine the right-to-shelter, but the defining role of New York as a beacon of promise, inscribed at the base of the Statue of Liberty.

“Right to Shelter is the reason that New York City has fewer people sleeping on our streets every night than other major U.S. cities. Limiting the length of shelter stays for asylum seekers will put more people on the streets and strain other city services including hospitals and sanitation.

“Rather than seeking permission to gut the right to shelter, the City should ask the Court instead to clarify that this right, grounded in the New York State Constitution, applies to all municipalities and counties across the state. That’s the fastest way to increase shelter capacity and secure more support from Albany without turning our back on who we are.”