City ceases rent subsidies to formerly homeless

Rent subsidies to 9,000 households with formerly homeless families and individuals will cease to be issued this month, according to the state Supreme Court, Appellate Division, which permitted the city’s decision to stop the payments in September.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the administration has begun to let participants know that they should not expect payments this month, a move that has prompted a backlash from advocates of the program, called Advantage.

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“I’m legally blind and I’m on a fixed income and I have a 13-year-old son,” said Karen Ruth, a recipient of the subsidies who said she will not be able to afford her rent without the help.

In early 2011, the Bloomberg administration opted to axe the program after the city lost state and federal funding to continue it. [WSJ]