Mayor Bill de Blasio and State Assembly Member and Chair of Housing Committee Steven Cymbrowitz recently announced that assembly bill A6584 has been introduced establishing the “Elder Rental Assistance Program;” and that language will be put into the Assembly’s one house budget. ERAP will be funded by a proposed Mansion Tax.

Created jointly by the Assembly and the Mayor's Office, ERAP will serve more than 25,000 seniors with monthly rental assistance of up to $1,300. Click here for more information about the Mansion Tax initiative.

“Seniors across our great city are being hit hard by our affordability crisis and, for tens of thousands of older New Yorkers, this program will be the difference between just getting by and having a little left over every month and living a full life," Mayor Bill de Blasio said. “I thank Assembly Speaker Heastie, Assembly Member Cymbrowitz, and the Assembly Democratic Conference – and urge Albany to sign on for our seniors.”

“In New York City, there are hundreds of thousands of fixed-income seniors who cannot afford to pay their rent and still buy medication, food and other necessities, and many of them simply do not have the luxury of waiting years for an affordable apartment to become available,” said Assemblyman Steven Cymbrowitz, Chair of the Housing Committee. “For a population desperately in need of safe and affordable housing options, the Elder Rental Assistance Program -- an initiative created jointly by the Assembly and the Mayor's Office -- is an innovative response that will restore hope to 25,000 struggling seniors, giving them the ability to remain in their homes and communities and age in place with the dignity that they so deserve. I'm looking forward to introducing the legislation to make this program a reality.”