New York State is facing a lawsuit for the fourth time in nearly 40 years over its failure to adequately support impoverished families at risk of homelessness. The suit, filed last month by the Legal Aid Society and Empire Justice Center, contends that the state's shelter allowance—a welfare benefit intended to cover housing costs—has not been raised in decades and falls far short of covering the state's high rents.

The New York State Constitution requires the state to provide “aid, care and support for the needy.” However, according to the lawsuit and an independent analysis by New York Focus and ProPublica, the shelter allowance does not cover rent for modest private housing anywhere in the state.

"When you don’t change your shelter allowance amounts for 40 years for single people and 20 years for families, I think there’s a reasonable argument that could be made that you’re not even really trying to meet your constitutional obligations to provide aid and care to the needy in New York State," said Pavita Krishnaswamy, supervising attorney for the Legal Aid Society’s Civil Practice Law Reform Unit.

Outside New York City, the shelter allowance supplement is optional, with only 15 of 57 counties offering it to families with children, according to the Empire Justice Center. Susan Antos, managing attorney for public benefits at Empire Justice Center, described the situation for those qualifying for public assistance as "cruel Dickensian or Kafka-esque."

One plaintiff, 54-year-old Minerva Pacumio, who is facing eviction, expressed her fear: "I don’t want to go to the shelter. I don’t want to lose everything."

Brian Kavanagh, Democratic chair of the Senate’s housing committee, noted the difficulty in estimating the cost of increasing shelter allowances due to potential changes in public assistance caseloads over time.

The lawsuit asserts that New York’s failure to update housing allowances is unconstitutional and demands that the state increase financial assistance to keep families and individuals housed.

Sources