Int. No. 932
By Council Members Nurse, Restler, Ossé, Hudson, Richardson Jordan, Hanif, Barron, Krishnan, Won, Cabán, De La Rosa, Rivera, Williams, Avilés, Stevens, Farías and Marte
A Local Law in relation to a study on the feasibility of establishing a social housing agency and the repeal of this local law upon the expiration thereof
Be it enacted by the Council as follows:
Section 1. Definitions. For purposes of this local law, the following terms have the following meanings:
City. The term “city” means the city of New York.
Social housing. The term “social housing” means any form of housing that is (i) owned collectively by residents or by a government or nonprofit entity, (ii) designed to be affordable and to be insulated from the speculative real estate market, and (iii) managed democratically with input from residents. Such term includes, without limitation, public housing, mutual housing associations, shared equity cooperatives, such as limited equity and zero equity cooperatives, and community land trusts.
Social housing agency. The term “social housing agency” means a city agency that would focus exclusively on the promotion and creation of social housing, including through acquisition of buildings to convert to social housing and the construction of new buildings to be used as social housing.
§ 2. Feasibility study. The department of housing preservation and development, in collaboration with the department of city planning, the department of social services and any other appropriate city agency, shall study and report on the feasibility of establishing a social housing agency. As part of conducting this study, these agencies shall consider case studies relating to social housing from other cities and countries and shall invite experts in social housing to contribute to the study. No later than one year after the effective date of this local law, the department of housing preservation and development shall submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council and shall post conspicuously on the department’s website a report on the findings of this study. Such report shall include:
1. A discussion of which agencies perform functions that would be transferred to the social housing agency and how such functions could be transferred;
2. An analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of creating a separate social housing agency in comparison to restructuring existing agencies;
3. A discussion of how a social housing agency could collaborate with federal, state, and local agencies that perform related functions;
4. Recommendations on governance structures for a social housing agency;
5. An estimate of the funding required for a social housing agency and a discussion of possible sources of funding, including federal and state funding;
6. A discussion of strategies a social housing agency could employ to convert existing buildings to social housing, including through the use of existing programs such as the 7A program and the third party transfer program;
7. A discussion of legal and practical barriers to the creation of a social housing agency and the creation of new social housing in the city;
8. A discussion of how market conditions might affect the creation and operation of a social housing agency;
9. A discussion of how the social housing agency could use existing or potential housing rental vouchers or subsidies;
10. A discussion of how potential revenue from housing owned or operated by the social housing agency could be utilized or reinvested; and
11. A discussion of areas of collaboration between labor unions and the social housing agency; and
12. Any other information relevant to assessing the feasibility of a social housing agency.
§ 3. Effective date. This local law takes effect immediately and expires and is deemed repealed upon the submission of the report to the mayor and the speaker of the council as required by section two of this local law. Upon such submission, the mayor shall notify the corporation counsel for the purpose of effectuating section 7-111 of the administrative code of the city of New York. Any failure to provide the notification described in this section shall not affect the effective date of any provision of this local law.
NAB/EH
LS #9733
1/25/23