Dear Governor Cuomo, Assemblyman Heastie and Senator Flanagan,

June 13, 2016

Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo

Governor of the State of New York

NYS Capitol Building

Albany, NY 12224

Honorable Carl Heastie

Speaker of the New York State Assembly

Legislative Office Building

Albany, NY 12248

Honorable John J. Flanagan

New York State Senate Majority Leader

State Capitol Building

Albany, NY 12247

Dear Governor Cuomo, Assemblyman Heastie and Senator Flanagan,

As Faith Leaders from many faith traditions and throughout New York State, we write you to express our appreciation for your support for building supportive housing to help the neediest and most vulnerable homeless men, women, and children in our communities. In January, most of us wrote to encourage you to support and extend this critical effort as part of your budget, and we are grateful you did.  The funds committed this spring to build the first 6,000 new units of supportive housing – the first step in your commitment to build 20,000 statewide – will help thousands of families and individuals break the cycle of poverty. 

As people of faith, we know you each share our belief that the true values of a society are revealed in the way it treats the neediest and most vulnerable among us. That is why we are writing you today to encourage you to finish the job by signing the Memorandum of Understanding your budget requires before those funds can be spent, and those 6,000 new units of supportive housing can be built.

As members of the clergy and the leaders of faith based communities and service organizations, we are on the front lines of providing support to the 80,000 homeless children, women and men in our communities.  From Montauk to Massena, Brooklyn to Buffalo, too many individuals and families with serious social service needs simply cannot find and maintain permanent, affordable housing and get off the streets. Today, the short supply of supportive housing units means just one in six applicants can be placed in a home. With the stroke of a pen, you can begin to change that.  

Supportive housing is the best, most humane, and most cost effective way to provide chronically homeless people the support they need. Providing supportive housing to our most vulnerable residents saves government’s money — $10,100 per year, per tenant here in New York – by reducing hospitalizations, detox and rehab programs, and incarceration.  

Governor Cuomo, Assemblyman Heastie and Senator Flanagan, you have shown leadership on this issue in your approval of the funds for these first 6,000 units.  Now we are calling on you to do it again.  Finish the job.  Sign this MOU and allow the first 6,000 of 20,000 units of supportive housing to be built.  If you do, you will send a strong message to members of our congregations and the general public that New York State is serious about ending homelessness and providing all of our citizens the opportunity to live full, decent and productive lives.  All that stands in the way now is this MOU.  

In Faith,