Graciela Torres testifies as Bronx tenant advocate
Graciela Torres, a Bronx rent-stabilized tenant and advocate, strongly supports Intros 978A and 1010, arguing the $50,000 cap doesn't reflect NYC reality and that seniors shouldn't have to become completely poor before receiving protection from displacement.
Good afternoon, Chair and members of the community.
My name is Graciela Torres.
I'm a Bronx resident, a rent-stabilized tenant, and a tenant advocate.
I work with seniors, people with disabilities, and tenants on a daily basis.
I am here today in strong support of Intro 978A and 1010, which would raise the scree and dree
Income eligibility cap from $50,000 to $75,000.
I want to be clear, I am not here because this benefits me at all.
I am here because I sit with the people that this bill is meant to protect.
I speak with seniors that are scared.
I speak with disabled tenants who are overwhelmed.
I speak with people who have lived in their homes for decades and are now afraid that New York City is slowly pushing them out.
Screen and DRE are not handouts.
They are protections.
They are what helps seniors and disabled New Yorkers stay in their home, stay in their communities, and avoid being forced into housing court shelters or homelessness.
The current $50,000 cap does not match the reality of New York City anymore.
Someone can earn more than $50,000 and not be wealthy.
They can still be rent burdened.
They can still be choosing between rent, food, medications, utilities, transportations, and basic dignity.
I work with seniors who've saved, worked, raised families, paid taxes, and did everything they were supposed to do.
But now, because of the cost of living, they are being...
treated like they make too much to qualify for help, when in reality they don't make enough to survive comfortably in this city, and that is wrong.
A senior should not have to become completely poor before the city decides they deserve protection.
A disabled tenant should not have to fall into crisis before the system responds.
We should not wait until someone is in housing court facing eviction or displaced before we admit that the rules are outdated.
Raising the cap to $75,000 is not extreme, it's realistic.
It reflects what we already know.
New York City is expensive.
And it is high.