Yonkers City Council urges state to create housing access voucher program; 5-2 vote

The Yonkers City Council on Tuesday adopted a resolution urging the New York State Assembly and New York State Senate to pass legislation establishing a housing access voucher program for people experiencing homelessness and asking Governor Hochul to sign it into law.

Council members presented the resolution as a state-level policy request rather than a local program change. Supporters said the measure would help people without stable housing access rental assistance at the state level; opponents warned of potential fraud and fiscal consequences.

Council Member Morante said the idea “looks great on its face” but voiced opposition because of “great concerns that there's potential for abuse and fraud in this particular item,” and said he could not support it. Minority Leader Breen argued the proposal was politically misguided and tied the issue to broader federal border policy, saying the bill “is disingenuous” in his view. Several other members — Majority Leader Rubo, Council Member Diaz, Council Member Pineda Isaac, Majority Whip Robinson and Council President Collins Bellamy — voted in favor.

The deputy clerk called a roll call; the resolution carried by a vote of 5 to 2. The resolution was introduced by the Yonkers City Council and had been discussed at the previous week's rules meeting.

The council did not specify a state bill number tied to this request; the resolution is a formal municipal recommendation urging state legislative action. The vote produced no local implementation directive or funding allocation from the City of Yonkers.

The council moved on after the vote to a separate item on utility rate legislation at the state level.