On Monday, October 18, 2021, VOLS Legal Director Peter Kempner testified at a New York City Council Committee on Aging hearing in support of Int. 1219-2018, which would establish a program to provide effective assistance and support to low income seniors with bed bug infestations in their homes. This program would provide laundry and cleaning services, de-cluttering, trash removal, and moving assistance so that the bed bug infestation can be successfully addressed.
VOLS’ testimony highlighted how a beg bug infestation could lead to eviction and homelessness for low income senior who do not have the right supports in place or the physical ability to properly prepare their apartments for remediation. We also pointed out that a program like this is a good investment as the costs to the city to house a homeless senior and the costs associated with deteriorating health outcomes resulting from homelessness far outweigh the investment. Peter Kempner’s Testimony is below:
NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON AGING
Monday October 18, 2021, 11:00 a.m.
SUBJECT: Int 1219-2018
My name is Peter Kempner. I am the Legal Director and Senior Law Project Director at Volunteers of Legal Service (VOLS). VOLS was established in 1984 and our purpose is to leverage private attorneys to provide free legal services to low-income New Yorkers to help fill the justice gap.
Our Senior Law Project focuses our services on helping low-income New York City seniors plan for the future by obtaining wills and other advance directives. This planning ultimately allows seniors to make their wishes clear, empower their chosen caregivers, and allows them to age in place in the community for as long as is feasible.
In addition to our life planning services we operate a legal advice hotline for seniors. Legal issues related to fear of eviction and homeless tops the list of questions we hear about from our clients.
While both New York State and New York City have taken significant steps to protect the rights of low-income tenants in recent years, landlords continue to push forward with their efforts to force out long term tenants in rent regulated housing, many of whom are seniors. The Housing Stability and Tenant Protection of 2019 eliminated many of the
perverse incentives landlords had to force out long term tenants, such as high vacancy rent increases and high rent deregulation. The Universal Access to Counsel program now ensures that seniors at or below 200% of the federal poverty level receive free representation in eviction proceedings. Even as these reforms and programs represent
progress in reducing evictions and homelessness among New York City seniors, many threats remain unaddressed.
One of the most challenging situations a senior can find themselves in, is a bedbug infestation. Beyond the bites, property damage, and the trauma that an infestation can cause, this is a situation that can put a senior at risk of eviction and homelessness. Many landlords are eager to bring a holdover proceeding based on a nuisance claim where a senior tenant is the victim of a bedbug infestation. In fact, one of the few types of eviction cases that have been allowed to move forward in the face of the recent and current pandemic related eviction moratoriums are holdover proceedings where the landlord is alleging a tenant is causing a nuisance in the subject premises.
Many seniors who are fully willing to cooperate with their landlord in taking the needed steps to treat and hopefully eliminate a bed bug infestation, may find themselves unable to do so because of physical limitations and disability.
As Int. 1219-2018 clearly recognizes, for a bed bud infestation to be properly abated the tenant must declutter, bag personal items, and move heavy furniture and appliances. Otherwise, the efforts will be in vain. Seniors with able bodied friends and family members or those who have the financial resource to hire help will be able to properly
prepare an apartment for bed bug remediation. Sadly, this leaves behind the most isolated seniors who have the least resources. These are the very seniors who if evicted will face homelessness because they will not have anyone to take them in nor will they have the financial wherewithal to find safe and affordable alternative housing.
I have seen bedbug related nuisance holdover proceedings play out repeatedly in Housing Court. The parties reach a stipulation of settlement under which the tenant agrees to grant access or the Judge orders access for bed bug treatment in the subject unit. When the workers arrive, they are unable to effectively treat the problem because of the conditions in the apartment, leading to the landlord returning to court with complaints about the tenant’s lack of cooperation and allegations of tenant recalcitrance. Too often this spirals out of control ending with a frustrated Judge letting
the execution of a warrant of eviction go forward. Legal services attorneys are often able to tap into the resources of either non-profit or government agencies to avoid this outcome, but these resources are scarce and often difficult to locate. The mandate in Int 1219-2018 that the services be the subject of educational and outreach campaigns will
ensure that seniors in need and their advocates will be able to avail themselves of the program.
Beyond the human toll of homelessness resulting from a bed bug infestation, from a cost-benefit perspective it is clearly preferable to invest taxpayer dollars in a program like the one outlined in Int 1219-2018 than to pay much more to house a senior in a shelter or other type of transitional housing. In addition, homelessness leads to deteriorating health outcomes for seniors resulting in increases in Medicare and Medicaid expenditures. These seniors may also find themselves more likely to end up in a nursing home or other facility, most often at taxpayer expense.
Our hope is that the assistance and support program outlined in Int 1219-2018 will save disabled New York City seniors from eviction, homelessness, and the spiraling negative impact that will have on their health and wellbeing.
Thank you for allowing us to submit this testimony and for supporting the needs of New York City’s seniors.
Peter Kempner, Esq.
Legal Director
To watch the video of the hearing and VOLS’ testimony, click here. Peter’s Testimony Begins at the 2:13:56 mark.