See our 2023 State Policy Platform here.

See our 2023 NYC Policy Platform here.

Our 2022 policy recommendations can help put New York City on the path to effectively ending homelessness among survivors.

Click here to read our full 2022 policy priorities

• Capture the True Scope of Homelessness – New York City cannot solve a problem it fails to measure correctly. We need one homeless census that includes all individuals and families experiencing homelessness in our city on a given night, not just those in one shelter system.
• Expand Access to Homeless Set-Asides — The City requires developers who receive certain capital subsidies to set aside at least 15% of their units for homeless individuals and families, but those staying in domestic violence shelters cannot apply for any of these units.
• Open Up Supportive Housing to Homeless Domestic Violence Survivors — Domestic violence survivors and their children are virtually excluded from the city’s supportive housing program, blocking access to a much needed resource for the most vulnerable survivors.
• Increase Investment in Homelessness Prevention — The City should invest in time-limited aftercare for families who exit shelter for permanent housing to ensure their basic housing stability needs are met, and continue to provide rental subsidies to families fleeing their abuser with nowhere else to go but shelter.

Our 2021 policy recommendations.

Click here to read our full 2021 policy priorities

Domestic violence is the number one cause of family homelessness in New York City, with 41% of families entering shelter because of abuse.

While there is no single solution to ending family homelessness, we know that there are policy changes that can significantly expand access to housing for domestic violence survivors and reduce the need for shelter.

Our recommendations are based on the premise that domestic violence survivors should have equal access to homeless housing resources, and that targeted investments in new programs can drastically reduce the number of families seeking or staying in shelter. They are:

• Open the door to New York City Dept. of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) homeless set-aside units for survivors in domestic violence shelters
• Level the playing field for homeless families looking for housing with a New York City rental subsidy
• Include all homeless New Yorkers in the daily count of individuals and families in shelter
• Develop a $10M Innovation Fund to support emerging best practices that mitigate or avoid the trauma of homelessness for survivors and their children