REMARKS
Council Member Diana Ayala's opening remarks on supporting domestic violence survivors in NYC shelters
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4 min
Council Member Diana Ayala, Chair of the General Welfare Committee, delivers opening remarks for an oversight hearing on supporting survivors of domestic violence in New York City's shelter system.
She provides context on the prevalence of domestic violence among homeless individuals, discusses recent statistics, and introduces two pieces of legislation aimed at improving reporting on domestic violence shelters.
- Ayala highlights that domestic violence is a leading cause of homelessness, especially for families with children.
- She introduces two bills to expand reporting requirements on exits from domestic violence shelters and applications for domestic violence shelters by household size.
- The hearing aims to assess the capacity of the current system and explore ways to better support survivors in securing safe, permanent housing.
Diana Ayala
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Thank you, and good morning, everyone.
0:00:49
And welcome to today's hearing.
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My name is Diana Ayala, and I am the deputy speaker of the New York City Council and the Chair of the General Warfare Committee.
0:00:59
Am I echoing?
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Are we good?
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Okay.
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Today, we are holding an oversight hearing on supporting survivors of domestic violence in New York City shelter system.
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As October is domestic violence awareness of.
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This hearing is particularly pertinent, and I am grateful to my colleagues, the administration and the advocates who have joined us today for this important topic.
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Domestic violence is frequently cited as one of the most common reasons for entering a shelter system.
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In the United States, 80% of women with children struggling with homelessness have also experienced domestic violence, and 57% of all women experiencing homelessness report domestic violence as a direct cause of their homelessness.
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In New York, the numbers are even more jarring with more than 1 and 3 individuals experiencing abuse by an to my partner in their lifetime.
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And while there are there has been a general decline in violent crime in New York City, according to the most recent fatality review report, published by the mayor's office and gender and domestic violence.
0:01:56
Domestic violence homicides increased by nearly 30% between 2021 2022.
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According to a recent report released by New Destiny Housing, more families with children entering DHS shelters due to domestic violence than evictions.
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In fiscal year 20 23, 20.3% of the family of families the families with children's population enter DHL shelters due to abuse, with evictions responsible for 11.1%.
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More than 1 in 5 families with children in the DHL's them identify domestic violence as the reason for their homelessness.
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In calendar year 2023, 10,842 survivors sought refuge in the in HRE's domestic violence show system, which comprises a slight increase over calendar year 2022.
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Most of the people who live in New York City domestic violence shelters are children.
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It is important for the committee to understand whether there is sufficient capacity to meet the needs and explore what happens when survivors must enter the general homeless shelter system.
0:03:00
We need to assess what can be done to enhance domestic violence services, especially in accommodating new or shifting needs for families that emerged in the aftermath of the pandemic and with the recent increase in asylum seekers in New York City.
0:03:14
The committee would like to know how we may be able to better support those in the existing system and how they're fair are faring at securing safe permanent and stable housing without having to enter general DHS.
0:03:27
We will also hear 2 pieces of preconceived legislation, which I have sponsored, a bill to expand the current reporting requirements on exits from domestic violence shelters to include domestic violence emergency shelter exits as well as domestic violence tier 2 shelter exits and a bill to amend the existing reporting requirements regarding multiagency emergency housing assistance to include reporting on applications for domestic violence emergency shelters and applications for domestic violence tier 2 shelters by house household size.
0:03:59
These bills which come from recommendations in the new Destiny report will help us to better understand the needs of so that we can provide them with the most appropriate support.
0:04:09
I look forward to hearing from the administration and advocates today and gather feedback on the oversight topic and legislation.
0:04:17
I would like to recognize that we have come member on on Zoom and have been joined by council member Gutierrez.
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I would also like to thank the committee staff who worked hard to prepare this hearing.
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I'm Mister Kilowan, senior legislative council, Sohar, Mozami, Legislative Council, Nina Rosenberg, Policy Analyst, Julia Haramas, Unit Head, Elizabeth Childers Garcia, Finance Analyst, Andres Gold Data Analyst, and finally, my staff, Elsie and Carlos Young, Chief of Staff.
0:04:46
I would now like to turn it over to chair Lewis for her opening remarks.
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Marks.
