Assemblyman Chris Tague (R,C,I-Schoharie) joined lawmakers today in calling on Gov. Cuomo to release $1.3 billion in federal CARES Act housing assistance to tenants and landlords. If the money goes unused by the end of September, it could be taken back by the federal government, leaving thousands of tenants and landlords throughout the state without assistance after struggling to make ends meet for months during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The money is there and the people who need it are worse off each day we leave them unassisted. I see no reason for the governor to be dragging his feet on distributing these funds,” said Tague. “This money has sat for months as tenants and small landlords have struggled to pay their rents and mortgages, and to leave them like this when we have the ability to help them is an insult to them and their livelihoods.”