Res. No. 672
Resolution calling upon the United States Congress and urging the Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to take action to exclude Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam counties from New York City’s AMI calculation, so that only the City’s five boroughs are taken into account.
By Council Members Cumbo, Moya, Chin and Cornegy
Whereas, The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) calculates the Area Median Income (AMI) for every metropolitan region in the country each year by focusing on the median household incomes for the metropolitan regions around cities, rather than just the city itself; and
Whereas, For this reason, HUD includes households in Westchester, Putnam and Rockland counties, in addition to New York City (NYC)’s five boroughs, in determining NYC’s AMI; and
Whereas, Westchester and Rockland counties, especially, have comparably higher median household incomes than NYC, with Westchester’s median household income at $83,422, Rockland’s at $85,808, and NYC’s at $50,700, causing NYC’s AMI to be 20 to 30 percent higher than it would be if only the five boroughs were considered; and
Whereas, Because NYC uses the AMI as its affordability baseline and therefore allows it to determine eligibility for affordable housing programs, the incomes levels required can be artificially high to the extent that average residents of low- and moderate-income communities in NYC cannot afford the dedicated, subsidized housing built in their neighborhoods; and
Whereas, This approach contributes to the existing affordable housing crisis in NYC, especially for poor families, one-in-five of which fall below the federal poverty threshold of $24,600; and
Whereas, Congress has already passed legislation exempting Westchester and Rockland counties from considering NYC in their AMI calculations, based largely on the fact that the City’s income levels would decrease and thereby negatively influence the AMI levels for those areas; and
Whereas, HUD reconsiders its calculation and policies annually and has the ability to change the calculation it uses to determine the AMI for NYC; and
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the United States Congress and urges the Secretary of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to take action to exclude Westchester, Rockland, and Putnam counties from New York City’s AMI calculation, so that only the City’s five boroughs are taken into account.
BM
LS # 4754
8/22/18 4:00 p.m.