Op-Ed: New York Housing Voucher Program Would Increase Housing Security

Pointing out that New York state accounts for 13 percent of the nation’s total unhoused population, Baaba Halm & Barika Williams argue in an op-ed for Gotham Gazette that the state needs a robust Housing Access Voucher Program (HAVP), a proposal that will be taken up by the state legislature.

The far-reaching benefits of rental assistance programs like HAVP are well-documented. As the NYU Furman Center explains, the ‘existing literature points to a robust array of [likely] positive outcomes.’ A separate federal study from Housing and Urban Development finds that among families receiving housing vouchers, fewer children were removed from homes and separated from their families, there were fewer school and childcare absences, and less evidence of alcohol or drug problems, 20 months later.

The article points to other studies showing that housing stability has a significant impact on education, employment, health, and other outcomes. According to the authors, housing assistance programs also reduce the burden on public shelter facilities in the long run. Halm and Williams argue that enacting HAVP would be in line with Governor Hochul’s Housing Compact and assist New Yorkers currently at risk of becoming unhoused.