PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Hannah May-Powers, Health and Safety Policy Analyst from the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President
2:30:12
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Hannah May-Powers, representing the Brooklyn Borough President's office, testified in support of the Stop Illegal Evictions Act and emphasized the need for stronger tenant protections. She highlighted the ongoing issues of illegal evictions and landlord harassment, particularly in East New York and Brownsville.
- Discussed the importance of past legislative efforts to protect tenants, including the Stand for Tenant Safety bill package
- Pointed out that some landlords are resorting to criminal behavior to circumvent regulations, such as illegal lockouts and utility shutoffs
- Called for better funding of community-based nonprofit legal services providers to support tenant protection efforts
Hannah May-Powers
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Hi.
2:30:13
And good afternoon, chair Sanchez, and thank you for holding this hearing today.
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My name is Hannah Mae Powers.
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I'm health and safety policy analyst at the office of the Brooklyn Borough president, who I'm here in behalf of and also in turn in behalf of Brooklyn tenants.
2:30:28
State and local legislative changes in the last few years have strengthened tenant protection, but but issues remain.
2:30:35
For example, during VP Reynoso's time in the council, he was proud to pass the stand for tenant safety bill package, A robust a robust a robust set of regulations designed to protect tenants from landlords using construction as harassment.
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The council also passed and expanded the right for tenants to have counsel and housing court.
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And during the pandemic, the state temporarily paused housing court proceedings, giving tenants relief from eviction, at least through legal channels.
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However, in order to size up these and other regulations, some landlords have become bolder, resorting to criminal behavior such as lockouts, shutting off utilities, and even throwing out tenants' possessions.
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Worse, recent reporting shows that NYPD frequently fails to hold landlords accountable for committing these crimes.
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These issues are particularly acute in East New York and Brownsville where rates of illegal evictions are among the highest in the city.
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That's why borough president Reynoso supports the stop illegal evictions act.
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These proposals clarify that illegal evictions constitute harassment.
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Give tenants who have been illegally evicted a tool to use in court to stay in their homes and create stronger disincentives for landlords to engage in these illegal practices.
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In addition to this legislation, in the next in the next budget cycle, we must ensure that our community based nonprofit legal services providers are well resourced and supported for the necessary work to organize, educate, and protect tenants.
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For example, we must fully fund the anti harassment tenant protection program, lift caps on rollovers, and address how Thank
Lincoln Restler
2:32:18
you.
