§ 10-04 Initial Eligibility and Approval for Shelter Residents and Persons Who Are Street Homeless.
RCNY § 10-04
(a)A household that is in an HRA or DHS shelter or is street homeless must meet the following requirements to be eligible to receive a shopping letter for CityFHEPS rental assistance under this subchapter: (1) The household must have total gross income that does not exceed 200 percent of the FPL, except that a household that consists of a sole member 18 years of age or older may have a total gross income that exceeds 200 percent of the FPL if the sole member is employed at least 35 hours per week and earning the minimum wage pursuant to NY Labor Law 652 or Part 146 of Title 12 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations.
(2)If the household is not currently in receipt of PA, HRA may require the household to apply for any assistance available under Part 352 of Title 18 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations.
(3)[Reserved.] (4) If a household is potentially eligible for any federal or State housing benefits, including Section 8, at HRA's request, the household may be required to apply for such benefits and accept them if offered.
(5)The household must not be eligible for FHEPS.
(6)If any member of the household has been determined to be eligible for HRA shelter under Section 452.9 of Title 18 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations, the household must not include the perpetrator of the domestic violence that resulted in such determination.
(7)If the household is currently in a DHS family shelter, the household must be eligible for shelter as determined by DHS pursuant to Parts 351 and 352 of Title 18 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations.
(8)The household must be street homeless, reside in a DHS shelter that has been identified for imminent closure, or belong to Groups A, B or C below: (A) Group A: A household will belong to Group A if it satisfies any of the criteria set forth below and either: (1) currently resides in a DHS shelter; or (2) currently resides in an HRA shelter: (i) The household is collectively working at least 10 hours per week in unsubsidized employment or in a qualifying subsidized employment program and can demonstrate income from such employment for the last 30 days. However, the Commissioner may waive the requirement that the household collectively work at least 10 hours per week for good cause where the household has a demonstrated, consistent work history and has experienced a recent loss in number of hours worked due to circumstances that are likely to be temporary; (ii) The household includes a member who receives federal disability benefits or receives a recurring monthly PA grant and has been determined by HRA to be potentially eligible for federal disability benefits based on their own documented disability; (iii) The household includes a member who is 60 years of age or older; or (iv) The household includes a member 18 years of age or older who is exempt from PA work activities, pursuant to Section 385.2(b)(5) of Title 18 of the New York Codes, Rules and Regulations. (B) Group B: A household will belong to Group B if it currently resides in an HRA or DHS shelter and satisfies any of the criteria set forth below: (i) The household includes a veteran; or (ii) The household includes an individual who has been referred by a City agency through a CityFHEPS qualifying program and the Commissioner has determined that due to the particular circumstances of the household, CityFHEPS rental assistance is needed to abbreviate the household's stay in an HRA or DHS shelter. (C) Group C: A household will belong to Group C if it includes a pregnant person who presents at DHS’ Prevention Assistance and Temporary Housing (PATH) intake center and is selected to participate in the CRIB Pilot.
(i)A household is eligible to participate in such pilot if such household has an income at or below 200% FPL and includes a pregnant person. A random number generator will be used to assign pilot-eligible households to one of three groups: control, CityFHEPS or Pathway Home. A household that is eligible for NoVA services is not eligible for participation in the CRIB pilot program. For purposes of this section, the term “NoVA services” means the program that assists domestic violence survivors seeking emergency housing from the department of homeless services by providing assessment, crisis counseling, shelter referral and placement in shelters.
(ii)Households in Group C may receive a shopping letter notwithstanding the criteria set forth in paragraph 7 of this subdivision.
(b)When a household has met the eligibility requirements set forth in 68 RCNY § 10-04(a), the Commissioner shall issue such household a shopping letter. The letter will include an expiration date and will be conditioned on the household continuing to meet the requirements of 68 RCNY § 10-04(a) until the time of approval.
(c)Once a household has received a CityFHEPS shopping letter, the household must meet the following additional conditions to be approved for CityFHEPS rental assistance: (1) The household must have a lease for at least one year for a residence in New York City or within New York State that has passed a safety and habitability assessment. The household must not have resided in such residence at any point during the prior year, except that the Commissioner, in the exercise of discretion, may allow a household to move into such residence in extraordinary circumstances, including but not limited to where the family was evicted, constructively evicted, or otherwise forced to leave due to the condition of the unit, and the landlord has made all repairs to bring the apartment into compliance with applicable codes; where the eviction was from supportive housing and returning the tenant to the supportive housing unit is in the best interests of the household; or where the means of ingress and egress are accessible for a person with a disability and/or the apartment unit has structural accessibility features that comport with the needs of a person with mobility disabilities.
(4)The household must be protected from rent increases for at least one year, except that if the unit is subject to government regulations with respect to allowable rents, rent increases authorized under such regulations will be permitted midyear.
(d)At the time of approval, HRA will calculate the household's monthly rental assistance amount pursuant to 68 RCNY § 10-06 or 68 RCNY § 10-07, as applicable. Except as provided in 68 RCNY § 10-09, the monthly rental assistance amount will not change until renewal, regardless of changes in household composition, income, the maximum monthly rents or the actual rent for the CityFHEPS unit. (Added City Record 9/28/2018, eff. 10/28/2018; amended City Record 10/28/2021, eff. 11/28/2021; amended City Record 2/6/2023, eff. 2/6/2023; amended City Record 6/28/2023, eff. 6/28/2023; amended City Record 10/6/2023, eff. 10/6/2023; amended City Record 11/16/2023, eff. 11/16/2023; amended City Record 2/5/2024, eff. 2/5/2024; amended City Record 8/14/2025, eff. 9/13/2025)
