As part of the New York City Department of Social Services, DHS and its partners continue to strengthen our work in the areas of preventing homelessness; outreach on the streets and on the subway; protecting individuals and families; and moving customers to permanent housing and supporting their transitions with aftercare services. Do homeless individuals and families have the right to take refuge in New York City. If you are currently homeless, you can seek help at the intake shelters listed below, which are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. When the department was created in 1993, New York City was the first city to have a municipal department that focused exclusively on the issue of homelessness.
The Department of Homeless Services was created in response to the growing number of homeless New Yorkers and the New York Supreme Court Consent Decree of 1981, which requires the State to provide shelter to all homeless people. Its first commissioner was Charles V. Muzzy Rosenblatt, the agency's first chief of staff, may have had the role of convincing Mayor David Dinkins that shelters for the homeless could work more efficiently if they were a separate department of the New York City Human Resources Administration. DHS Police Workforce Patch Housing and Support Services (HSS) administers a number of programs to address the problems of homeless people in the state.
These programs provide a range of services for homeless, at-risk, and low-income families. HSS programs are designed to prevent homelessness, provide shelter to the homeless, build supportive housing for the homeless, and offer essential services to stabilize housing situations and increase levels of self-sufficiency. The Department of Homeless Services Police was created in 1997, assigning special officers to several DHS facilities. The New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS) is an agency of the New York City government that provides services to the homeless, although its ultimate goal is to overcome homelessness.
A family facing imminent danger due to domestic violence may be eligible to be placed in an emergency shelter, which would provide safety against the abuser. Until the Legal Aid Society filed the lawsuit against McCain in 1983, New York City placed homeless families with children in dangerous “welfare hotels” and armories. If you have difficulty applying for shelter or receiving a bed in a shelter, or if you have questions about the shelter system, participate in the Coalition's Crisis Intervention Program for the Homeless. If you are in New York City (New York), call 311 or visit the New York City Department of Homeless Services (DHS), where you will find information on admissions centers, prevention programs, etc.
There is no legal right of refuge for adult families; however, New York City provides shelter to this population through the adult family system. The federal government is not directly involved in the City's shelter system, but it does provide assistance and support to several programs through several federal agencies, including the Veterans Administration, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Education. In 1986, the Appeals Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York ordered the City to provide emergency housing to homeless families with children and prohibited the city from sending homeless families to stay overnight in welfare offices. The OTDA inspects shelters, issues regulations and other procedures that govern them, and approves the operating procedures and plans of the City's shelters and programs.
If you are currently homeless or at risk of homelessness, contact your local Department of Social Services. As a result of COVID-19, DHS has made administrative changes to the policies and procedures of the New York City Shelter System. The City's Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) operates shelters for people who have been left homeless by fire, flood, or eviction order. .
