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We are pleased to report that yesterday afternoon, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that he has instructed his Budget Director to execute a Memo of Understanding to release $2 billion for Supportive and Affordable Housing to be signed by the State Senate and State Assembly.
The details of the agreement are still to be finalized but this is very good news for the tens of thousands of individuals and households statewide in need of housing with supportive services as well and many more thousands in need of affordable housing — and another big advance for the Interfaith Assembly and our allies with the Campaign 4 NY/NY housing.
The Interfaith Assembly and our partners with the campaign 4 NY/NY housing have been engaged in a nearly 2 year effort to gain commitments from the Mayor and Governor to produce 35,000 units of supportive housing over the next 15 years. After letters signed by 120 members of the New York State Assembly, 350 organizations andnearly 300 faith leaders, the Mayor pledged 15,000 units last November and the Governor pledged an additional 20,000 units in his January address  – and in April, he and the State legislature included funding for the first 6,000 of these in this year’s budget.
Upon the passage of the State budget this spring, when only $150 million of the $2 billion allocated for supportive and affordable housing was actually released, the campaign kept up the pressure by holding a weekly presence in front of the Governors NYC office — and two of these were organized by the Interfaith Assembly in partnership with our faith allies.
We want to thank all of the faith leaders who joined us at these events:
    Among them: The Reverend Peter Cook – Executive Director of the New York State Council of Churches, The Reverend Robert Foltz-Morrison- Executive Presbyter of the NYC Presbytery, Bishop Andrew St. John – Rector and ED of the Holy Apostle Church and Soup Kitchen, Father Stephen Mimnaugh- ED, St. Francis Friends of the Poor, Sister Carol DeAngelo – Sisters of Charity, Leader Anne Klaeysen – New York Society for Ethical Culture, The Reverend Chloe Breyer – ED of the Interfaith Center of New York, The Reverend James Addison – Coordinator, Life-Experience and Faith Sharing Association, Rabbi Simkha Weintraub – Rabbinic Director, New York Jewish Healing Center, Imam Khabir McGeehan – Masjid Al Farah, The Reverend Robert Brashear – Senior Pastor, West Park Presbyterian Church, Chair, Interfaith Assembly, The Reverend Brian Moll – Executive Director, Rescue Alliance, Frances Hardy – Faith & Community Relations Manager, Habitat for Humanity NYC, Co-Chair, Micah Faith Table Housing Committee, The Reverend Frank Morales – Senior Pastor, All Souls Episcopal Church, Brother Anthony Zuba -Parish of Holy Cross- St, John the Baptist, NYC,  The Reverend Jim Fairchild- Riverside Church, The Reverend Thia Reggio – Pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Astoria,  Mary Dugan of All Souls Unitarian church, Deborra Mullins and Lynn Wishart of 5th Avenue Presbyterian Church, Francine Perlman of the Society for the Advancement of Judaism, and many others.
Thanks to all who joined us and to the over 170 faith leaders  who signed the letter delivered to the Governor’s staff on August 31, calling on the Governor and the State legislative leaders to sign the MOU releasing the $1.97 billion.
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