NYC Doubles Spending on Homelessness to $3.2 Billion Since 2014

(Bloomberg) -- New York City spending on homelessness has more than doubled to $3.2 billion since 2014, and the number of people in shelters hit an all-time high of 61,415 in January, Comptroller Scott Stringer said.

The figures offer no indication that the problem is getting less acute, according to a report Stringer released Wednesday. Emergency rent assistance requests jumped 34% between 2014 and 2018, with 1,400 more requests received through April this year than last year.

The alarming numbers prompted Stringer to put the city Department of Homelessness Services on his “watch list.” The comptroller, who has said he wants to run for mayor in 2021, started the list last year to highlight agencies that raised concerns over increased spending, spokeswoman Tian Weinberg said.

The report notes that shelter costs have also more than doubled in the past five years, reaching $1.9 billion this fiscal year, which ends June 30. Although spending on prevention and permanent housing has risen to $1 billion from $436 million in that time, as of April the shelter population had increased by 11.5%. While the number of families with children has increased 9.4%, there are 7.6% fewer children in shelter now than in 2014, the report said.

The city Department of Buildings also got placed on the “watch list” after construction-related accidents increased 252% in the four years ending in 2018, including a 167% increase in fatalities. The building department added 528 employees and increased its budget 62% to $160 million in the same period, according to the report.

To contact the reporter on this story: Henry Goldman in New York at hgoldman@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Flynn McRoberts at fmcroberts1@bloomberg.net, Michael B. Marois, Boris Korby

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