What's happening
This bill prohibits adult homeless shelters from being located within 500 feet of any school in New York City.
Why it matters
Could significantly reduce the number of potential sites for adult homeless shelters in New York City. , making it harder to find locations that comply with the new distance requirement, given the density of schools in many neighborhoods.
May impact how quickly and where the city can respond to homelessness needs. , potentially slowing down the opening of new shelters or forcing them into less accessible or less integrated areas.
Reflects ongoing concerns and debates about the proximity of vulnerable populations to schools. , highlighting tensions between community safety perceptions and the need for accessible services for homeless adults.
Could set a precedent for additional location-based restrictions on other types of social services. , influencing future policy decisions both within New York City and in other municipalities.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Limit Shelters Near Schools
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to cities
- Referred to cities
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1460
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 15, 2019
Introduced by Sen. SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to homeless shelters for adults
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 21-312 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new subdivision f to read as follows:
f. In any city with a population of one million or more, no shelter for adults shall be located within five hundred feet of any school, including, but not limited to any public school as such term is defined by section 13-501 of this code.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD06216-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to homeless shelters for adults
Purpose
The purpose of this bill is to prohibit any shelter for single adults to be located within five hundred feet of any school, including, but not limited to any public school in any city with a population of one million or more.
Summary of provisions
This bill amends Section 21-312 of the administrative code of the city of New York by adding a new subdivision f. The bill will prohibit any shelter for single adults to be located within five hundred feet of any school, including, but not limited to any public school in any city with a population of one million or more.
Existing law
This is a new law.
Justification
In recent years there has been an extraordinary increase in the number of New Yorkers living in homeless shelters and the impact of this grow- ing shelter population has been particularly acute in New York City where a shelter census conducted dated January 31, 2010 showed a record number of 39,256 people living in municipal shelters. It is essential for New York's public policies to treat shelter residents with compassion and to appropriately meet their need for housing but many concerns have been raised about the process used to locate shelters and the use of inappropriate sites as shelter locations.
For many concerned community residents, the prospect of a homeless shel- ter for single adults being located immediately adjacent to a public school raises serious concerns about the potential impact upon the safe- ty and wellbeing of the vulnerable children who attend the school: This is of particular concern in light of the lack of information currently available regarding the criminal and/or mental health history of shelter residents in New York's largest municipality.
In the west Bronx, as in other parts of New York City, the lack of a reasonable limit on the proximity of single adult shelters to schools has led to community protests and increased opposition to homeless shel- ters in general. By establishing a reasonable statutory standard, this legislation protects the interests of the community residents and less- ens the opposition to homeless shelters.
Legislative history
01/22/16 Referred to Cities
Fiscal implications
None
Local fiscal implications
None
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.