“Governor Kathy Hochul, in her 2023 State of the State address, laid out a bold agenda that builds on the successes of her first address in 2022 yet reaches further as she pledges to make public safety, her number one priority while creating opportunities to provide compassionate care and housing opportunities for vulnerable New Yorkers.

“Now in my 2nd year of serving this great Borough, I look forward to working closely with Governor Hochul to ensure that together, we can achieve the goals she outlined so that our entire city benefits.”

Public Safety: Many of our residents feel unsafe and it will take elected officials, community leaders, clergy, law enforcement and advocates working together to address this issue. While our violence interrupters have been effective in deterring youth from being justice-involved, we also know that more needs to be done. We are grateful for the expansion of the red flag laws in 2022 that allows law enforcement to remove firearms from individuals that pose a danger to themselves or others. This along with funding for the largest investment in the state`s gun involved violence elimination (GIVE) Initiative shows that the Hochul administration is making this a priority.

Addressing Mental Health: There are 3,200 New Yorkers struggling with mental health issues or addiction living on the streets. $1 billion is being invested to make critical policy changes. Instead of marginalizing these populations further, Governor Hochul announced a plan aimed at increasing inpatient psychiatric treatment by 1,000 beds and adding 3,500 housing units serving individuals with mental illness with wrap-around services.

Housing Equity: To address the housing crisis that exists in the Bronx and across the state, Governor Hochul has pledged to build 800,000 new homes over the next decade to meet the historic shortage and that there is an equitable distribution across the state. Her New York Housing Compact will require all levels of government to achieve new home creation targets on a three-year cycle with Downstate municipalities served by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, including New York City.

“This is an exciting time for the Bronx, New York City, and New York State under Governor Hochul`s leadership and we will continue to work with her administration to push for transformative change for our residents and families.”