Lobby Spitzer To Offer Housing Authority Relief;

500 Jobs on Line:
Lobby Spitzer To Offer HA Relief


The clock is ticking on the life of a bill that would help close the Housing Authority's budget gap and potentially stave off 500 layoffs.

GREGORY FLOYD: Don't insult us, Governor. The measure went to Governor's Spitzer's desk on Aug. 3, and he has until midnight on Aug. 15 to sign it. Unions, community groups and the Mayor's Office were working last week to convince Mr. Spitzer to approve the bill.

'Not On Our Knees'

"We should not have to be on our knees every year begging for housing," said District Council 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts, who represents several thousand HA employees, at an Aug. 10 press conference.

The measures passed both the Senate and the Assembly unanimously. HA officials have threatened to lay off 500 workers and cut services due to a projected $225-million budget gap. The bill in Albany would provide $47 million in additional revenue by giving the agency the same access to funds as private landlords for its public assistance residents. Currently, a private landlord receives about $450 for a family of four on public assistance, while the HA receives about $168. The bill would give the HA parity.

"The Governor must sign this bill," said Teamsters Local 237 President Gregory Floyd, who has about 8,000 members who work at HA. "Anything less would be an insult."

About 1,500 Local 237 members and 15,000 District Council 37 members are also public-housing residents.

Support memorandums have been written by Local 237, DC 37, the State AFL-CIO, the Civil Service Coalition of Building Trades and Municipal Unions, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, and the city's District Council of Carpenters.

The Mayor's Office has also been lobbying the Governor to sign the bill. "This law will force the state to provide NYCHA with its fair share of funding," said Housing Authority Chairman Tino Hernandez.