Concerns over eviction protections that emerged during the pandemic are being addressed by a measure the Albany County Legislature passed this week.
Democratic Legislator Sam Fein of the 6th district says he proposed EPIC, the Eviction Prevention Intervention Collaborative, to address a fundamental imbalance in the city of Albany, where he claims about 2% of tenants have legal representation compared to over 90% of landlords. He adds when someone is at risk of losing their housing, they deserve representation from an attorney.
Fein says the program "evolved a bit from the original version" he introduced in 2022.
"In the midst of, you know, housing crisis, families facing evictions, especially in light of the COVID pandemic," Fein said. "You know, we wanted to do something to help tenants stay in their homes. So we introduced a proposal to provide legal counsel to the people facing eviction and provide rental arrears, money that would go to landlords to for that would go to landlords for tenants who are behind on their rent, to help them stay in their homes.”
The measure fell one vote short in March.
"Some of the concerns from legislators were that they felt that it should have representation for landlords, small landlords who are struggling as well, people who live in owner occupied homes, who are losing rental income. So we went back to the drawing table and tried to come up with a plan that would really work for everyone," said Fein.
Under the plan, the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York will administer rental arrears and Alternatives to Economic and Housing Displacement will provide intervention services.
Elisabeth Binder, a former tenant in Albany, supports EPIC legislation and Fein's effort to bring it over the finish line.
“I actually saw a Facebook post from him regarding EPIC and his drive to get this bill passed, and I reached out to him regarding EPIC because I felt it was a really good representation of both landlords and tenants that can get into some sticky situations. I work in real estate, so I really see a lot of it on both from both sides,” said Binder, noting tenants fearful of eviction should they complain about something often don't know their rights.
A lot of them are fearful of requesting, looking for help, or even knowing that there's help out there, and not just the monetary help, but just being able to reach out to Legal Aid," Binder said. "And I think that's really important, that people know that you can reach out to Legal Aid, and now there will be funds available to assist them if they fall on hard times, which we know we're seeing in our economy. Or if they see that, you know, there's something wrong with the apartment that they're renting and that they have a right to, you know, quiet enjoyment. They have a right to a safe environment. And it's the responsibility of the landlord.”
The county and the City of Albany will jointly fund EPIC with the county contributing $211,581 for countywide use and the city kicking in $100,000 to be used in the municipality.
Albany County Executive Dan McCoy declined to comment about the bill, which passed on Tuesday by a 27 to 9 margin.
