Judith Goldiner, Attorney-in-Charge of The Legal Aid Society’s Civil Law Reform Unit, has penned a new op-ed for the Times Union, laying out the critical pieces missing from Governor Kathy Hochl’s recently announced New York Housing Compact. While the proposal promises 800K new units over the next 10 years, it does little to address the current housing crisis.

“The governor’s focus on long-term housing proposals isn’t enough,” Goldiner writes. “Here are two proposals that could immediately serve tenants: ‘Good Cause’ eviction legislation and the Housing Access Voucher Program (HAVP). These are landmark pieces of legislation that, combined, would single-handedly keep millions of tenants safely housed and saved from homelessness.”

“Good Cause” protections simply require landlords to demonstrate justification for evicting tenants in unregulated units. It is budget neutral and would protect tenants from exorbitant rent hikes. The proposed voucher program would allow families struggling to pay rent to stay in their current homes and help homeless New Yorkers obtain permanent housing.

Read the full piece here.