Governor Hochul Announces $45.9 Million Funding Available to Develop Additional Supportive Housing Units Statewide

Tenth Round of Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative Funding To Aid New Yorkers Experiencing Homelessness

Housing Units Designated for Veterans, Individuals With Serious Mental Illness or Substance Use Disorder, Domestic Violence Survivors and Older Adults With Disabilities

Governor Kathy Hochul announced the availability of $45.9 million through the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative or ‘ESSHI,’ which funds supportive services to help provide stable housing for New Yorkers experiencing homelessness. Funding is available to support hundreds of additional units that serve adults experiencing homelessness, survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, veterans and chronically homeless families, and individuals living with a mental illness or substance use disorder.

“For those experiencing homelessness, supportive services and a stable home can be life-changing,” Governor Hochul said. “The Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative continues to help individuals connect with support and recover from challenges in a safe environment.”

ESSHI provides operating funding for supportive service providers serving homeless veterans and their families; survivors of domestic and gender-based violence; older adults who are disabled or frail; young adults with a history of incarceration, homelessness, or foster care; chronically homeless individuals and families; individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities; individuals reentering the community from prison; and those living with HIV or AIDS, serious mental illness or substance use disorders. The State Office of Mental Health serves as the lead procurement agency for the funding, which is dispersed by an interagency workgroup of eight state agencies serving vulnerable New Yorkers.

The FY 2027 Enacted Budget continues Governor Hochul’s FY 2026 53 percent increase in funding for the initiative, allowing projects to apply for up to $34,000 annually per unit or qualifying individual in the New York City metropolitan area, which includes all five city boroughs and Suffolk, Nassau, Westchester, Rockland and Putnam counties. Developments in other areas of the state are eligible for up to $31,000 annually per unit or qualifying individual.

This boost in funding resulted in 200 conditional awards for projects statewide — the most ever issued by the initiative — including 54 projects in New York City, 21 projects on Long Island and 126 projects in locations north of the metropolitan area. To date, New York State has committed to 11,657 safe and permanent units as part of the Empire State Supportive Housing Initiative launched in 2016.

Funding may be used for rental assistance and services to eligible target populations to ensure their housing stability. Permissible uses include rental subsidies and other occupancy costs; services or staff to identify and locate eligible individuals who need housing; primary and behavioral health services; employment and vocational training; educational assistance, parenting skills development and support; child care assistance counseling and crisis intervention; children’s services, including educational advocacy, support and counseling; and costs associated with services that help individuals and families remain stably housed.

Research has shown that permanent supportive housing reduces the demand for shelters, hospital beds, emergency rooms, prisons and jails, and has a positive effect on employment, school attendance and mental and physical wellbeing. Supportive housing projects can also positively impact neighborhoods through new construction or by rehabilitating existing buildings.