ADVOCACY AGENDA

New Destiny Housing Corporation is a key partner in the United Way/Enterprise Domestic Violence and Permanent Housing Task Force and the NYC Coalition of Domestic Violence Residential Providers which advocate 1) to improve and increase the existing permanent housing resources for domestic violence survivors and 2) to expand the overall supply of housing available to domestic violence survivors in New York City.

• United Way/Enterprise Domestic Violence and Permanent Housing Task Force
• The Coalition of Domestic Violence Residential Providers

The United Way/Enterprise Domestic Violence and Permanent Housing Task Force was launched following a domestic violence and housing symposium, “Opening Doors: Expanding Permanent Housing for Domestic Violence Survivors”, sponsored by New Destiny in May 2006. The Task Force, convened by United Way and Enterprise Community Partners, began in June 2006 and met monthly to gather and analyze data on the permanent housing needs of domestic violence shelter users and prepare recommendations. The final product included recommendations that were released to the Mayor’s Office of Health and Human Services in March 2007. In the spring and summer, members of the Task Force met with the Mayor’s Office to discuss the implementation of key recommendations.

Task Force recommendations focused on 3 areas:

• Making improvements to the domestic violence shelter system to better facilitate the movement of domestic violence survivors to safe stable housing.
• Increasing the permanent housing options for domestic violence survivors by reducing and eliminating the barriers that prevent domestic violence shelter residents from accessing affordable and supportive housing.
• Connecting domestic violence survivors exiting domestic violence shelters for permanent housing with aftercare services to improve their chances for remaining stably housed.

Click here for a draft of Task Force preliminary recommendations designed to increase the permanent housing options available to domestic violence survivors.

In October 2007 Mayor Bloomberg and the Task Force jointly announced six new initiatives designed to help reduce or eliminate barriers faced by domestic violence shelter residents seeking safe, affordable housing. The six initiatives the City committed to implement are as follows.

1) DV Work Advantage – a rental subsidy program tailored to domestic violence shelter residents giving them up to six months after securing permanent housing to find employment (reversing the order of the Work Advantage Program).

2) Eligibility of DV shelter residents for a proportional share of homeless housing units developed by HPD.

3) A pilot program to reduce the time required to process Section 8 and NYCHA public housing applications under the NYCHA domestic violence priority.

4) A training program for domestic violence service providers to facilitate the application of eligible domestic violence survivors to NY/NY III supportive housing.

5) Improved data sharing between the HRA and DHS shelter systems to identify and track domestic violence survivors in both systems.

6) A partnership with United Way of New York City to support the development of enhanced after-care programs for domestic violence survivors leaving the shelter system.

The City has been meeting quarterly with representatives from the Task Force to monitor and evaluate the progress on the six initiatives. Since then, United Way has developed a pilot program called “My Door”, an aftercare program for domestic violence survivors exiting the shelter system. The program, to be administered by Sanctuary for Families, will launch in summer 2008 and serve former shelter residents who find permanent housing in the Bronx.

Another initiative identified by the Task Force was the creation of a mechanism to link domestic violence survivors residing in shelters to vacant apartments in low-income tax housing credit (LIHTC) projects. New Destiny has taken on the challenge and will launch Project Safe Home in the fall of 2008

Task Force members identified underutilized Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) units as a potential source of permanent housing for domestic violence shelter residents. Although the LIHTC is the most successful low-income housing program in the country, developers often have difficulty finding tenants to fill units that become vacant after the initial rent-up. The Task Force recommended that a mechanism be developed to link domestic violence shelter residents to these units. Such a program would open a formerly untapped affordable housing resource for shelter residents while simultaneously reducing the time units remain vacant, thus boosting revenue for developers. Click here to learn more about Project Safe Home

The Coalition of Domestic Violence Residential Providers (“The Coalition”) consists of all 18 City-funded non-profit domestic violence residential shelter providers in New York City. The Coalition advocates with a unified voice for a continuum of care that provides quality housing and services for all domestic violence survivors. The Coalition’s main goals are to (1) increase the housing and services available to low-income domestic violence survivors and (2) improve the access of survivors to existing resources.

New Destiny plays an active leadership role in the Coalition. New Destiny staff members serve on the Steering, Housing and Services committees, prepare testimony and written materials on behalf of the Coalition and, collect and analyze monthly “Statistics for Advocacy” tracking the outcomes of domestic violence shelter stays.

Click here to read testimony drafted by New Destiny to be read into the record by Coalition co-Chair Judith Kahan at the New York City Housing Authority’s annual public hearings in 2008.

Click here to view reports on the findings of the “Statistics for Advocacy” project.