Democratic Members of the New York City congressional delegation urged that a portion of the New York City Housing Authority’s (NYCHA) Super Storm Sandy emergency appropriations allocation be used to train and hire public housing residents under its Section 3 obligations in a letter sent a letter to NYCHA Chair John Rhea February 20. According to the letter, “[m]any tenants could not work because their places of business were damaged or public transportation services had been disrupted. Some even lost their jobs. Utilizing Section 3 in conjunction with NYCHA’s relief efforts would increase the job opportunities available for these struggling families.” The signatories also said that there are not enough qualified local contractors to address the estimated $800 million in property damage in New York City, and by training residents under the Section 3 program, the recovery could be completed in a more expeditious manner.The Section 3 program requires recipients of HUD housing and community development funding to provide “to the greatest extent feasible” job training, employment, and contracting opportunities for low and very low income residents and eligible businesses.The signatories are Representatives Nydia Velázquez, Gregory Meeks, Charles Rangel, Yvette Clarke, Hakeem Jeffries, Jose Serrano, Grace Meng, Eliot Engel, Joseph Crowley, and Carolyn Maloney.
A copy of the letter is available at [to be posted folder].