Judge blocks City Council lawsuit seeking to expand rental assistance: What to know

NEW YORK (PIX11) – A judge struck down a City Council-backed lawsuit attempting to force Mayor Eric Adams to expand a housing voucher program known as CityFHEPS.

CityFHEPS helps people find and keep housing and is administered by the Department of Social Services. To be eligible for CityFHEPS, the household must have a gross income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level.

One of the criteria for eligibility for the program is that you've previously lived in a homeless shelter.

People who receive CityFHEPS can get it for up to five years. The maximum amount of rent the program will pay for an apartment in New York City is $1,100 per month, according to the Department of Social Services.

The lawsuit sought the implementation of legislature passed by the Council that increases access to city-funded rental assistance. The Council overrode Adams' veto of the measure last year.

A Manhattan Supreme Court judge sided with Adams' office, ruling that the Council lacks the authority to expand the program due to state social service laws.

The mayor's office responded to the ruling, saying that it helped over 10,000 New Yorkers from going into homeless shelters last year through CityFHEPS vouchers. It also helped another 13,000 people leave homeless shelters.

Around 10,000 households are trying to use their CityFHEPS vouchers to find permanent housing, according to the mayor's office.

To find out more about CityFHEPS vouchers, click here.