Addabbo Statement on Good Cause, ELFA No Vote

Senator Joseph P. Addabbo, Jr. said “New York's current housing crisis is due to a critical lack of affordable, credible inventory. I believe, like many of my constituents seeking to help both tenants and landlords, that “Good cause" measures would prove counteractive, which is one reason I voted against this housing proposal in the State Budget. While I agree with and support many items in the ELFA part of the budget, such as Mayoral Control, educational funding, labor initiatives, changes to Tier 6, and the addressing of squatter issue, my consistent opposition to Good Cause and support for the need to help both tenants and landlords, as well as a better way to build new affordable housing, caused my vote against this part. I also knew the votes existed for all the other positive parts of ELFA, which were going to be approved by the Senate anyways.

New York needs more housing and there are much better ways to accomplish this, such as incentivizing new construction of affordable single- and multi-family homes and the use of rental vouchers. "Good Cause" will not help create housing, alternatively it could further reduce inventory and make it more difficult to maintain existing units. Placing unreasonable, questionable legal mandates on small property owners, while causing animosity with their tenants, is irresponsible and could only exacerbate the current housing crisis. I believe a growing number of landlords may become reluctant to rent their apartments if they are faced with possible future court proceedings.

Housing is critical to New York's overall economy, providing vital funding for the state and localities. Spurring growth is the solution to our current housing crisis and proposals like "good cause" eviction, without assisting both the tenants and landlords, will reduce new housing opportunities.

We cannot have a “one-size-fits-all” approach to housing in New York, so my vote against the housing portion of the budget is a vote in favor of doing what I believe is right for our community and working towards a more fair, programmatic way of addressing the housing crisis. “