“As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to disrupt our daily lives, tenants and small landlords are facing devastating financial hardship. No New Yorker should live in fear of losing the roof over their head due to lost income in such a difficult situation, and the last thing we need during the cold winter months of an airborne pandemic is for our streets and shelters to become overcrowded, which could set us back significantly in our fight against the pandemic. We need to keep people in their homes for the safety of themselves and their communities, and the temporary stay on evictions in this legislation will help us do just that.

“At the same time, we must do more to protect the small landlords who rely on rent income to support themselves and feed their families. Enacting these measures making it harder for lenders to foreclose on these homeowners or to place liens on their properties is a necessary step in the right direction, but we must continue working with our federal representatives and the incoming administration to support all homeowners, renters and small landlords with the financial relief they need to ease the burden on those tenants in arrears and the small, blue-collar landlords who rent apartments to put food on their tables.

“The bill is a decent start to help those that need immediate assistance, but further work is needed to better protect hardworking families facing financial difficulties. As we move forward on the road to recovery, I will fight tooth and nail to ensure future relief funding is allocated appropriately so that we can stabilize the housing situation for all New Yorkers in the months and years following this devastating pandemic. I look forward to getting back to work in January to continue fighting for 11^th District tenants and landlords alike.”