The New York City Housing Authority mistakenly cut off federal rent subsidies for hundreds of tenants at privately run buildings, triggering eviction notices and frightening residents who insist they’ve paid their rent on time, according to City Reporter.
The error occurred at multiple NYCHA developments run by private firms the housing authority relies on to manage properties under a controversial program called Permanent Affordability Commitment Together, or PACT, the news site reported.
The problem appears to be a paperwork screwup, with NYCHA terminating tenants’ Section 8 rent subsidies because they believed the tenants had failed to recertify their income and household makeup, as they’re required to do each year, according to City Reporter.
The scope of the issue is not completely clear, but the nonprofit New York Legal Assistance Group told the news site that it has fielded hundreds of calls from tenants in PACT developments in the last several months who were hit with eviction notices related to recertification issues, the news site said.
The housing advocacy group Metro Industrial Areas Foundation held a rally in East New York on the issue recently, singling out three developments there — the Linden, Boulevard and Penn-Wortman Houses — where they say hundreds of families who thought they were following the rules are now fighting to keep their apartments, according to City Reporter.
“NYCHA has met with legal and advocacy groups to discuss a scanning backlog issue the Authority experienced which resulted in erroneous termination warning letters being sent to some households,” NYCHA spokesman Andrew Sklar told The City Reporter. “This scanning backlog has since been resolved and we are committed to improving our systems and processes as well as our communication with residents regarding their legal obligations.”
