Representatives Jerrold Nadler and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez led a group of New York Congressional Delegation Members in sending a letter to Governor Hochul, New York State Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie in support of “Good Cause” eviction protections.

The proposed legislation would require landlords to demonstrate a good reason for evicting tenants in non-rent-stabilized units. It would also protect tenants from exorbitant rent hikes and allow individuals to advocate for repairs without the fear of retaliation.

“As members of New York State’s Congressional delegation, we write to express our support for “Prohibition of Eviction without Good Cause” (S3082/A5573), a bill currently before the New York State Legislature,” the letter reads in part. “We believe this measure, which requires landlords to have a legitimate reason to pursue eviction, is helpful toward ensuring that our state’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is to include all New Yorkers.”

“Evictions have commenced across the state, while over 500,000 households in New York are behind on their monthly housing bills. Black and brown New Yorkers are three times more likely to face eviction than their white neighbors, and 1.6 million New York households have no protections whatsoever against eviction in court,” the letter continues. “They live at the whims of their landlord – often facing eviction for something as common as calling to request a repair.”

“Tenants across New York State are facing unprecedented levels of housing instability following the pandemic and we must protect all households from evictions, especially residents in unregulated units,” said Judith Goldiner, Attorney-In-Charge of the Civil Law Reform Unit at The Legal Aid Society. “We urge Albany to pass this critical bill to help keep families housed, and applaud Congress Member Nadler and others from our Congressional Delegation for their support of Good Cause.”