


Mayor Eric Adams used his executive powers on Friday to dump a controversial 90-day shelter rule in a bid to move homeless New Yorkers into permanent housing more quickly — and free up beds for migrants in the city-run facilities.
The “90-day rule” had required homeless people to spend three months in Big Apple shelters before they could become eligible for housing vouchers to help with their rent.
Now, the nixing of the requirement means the city can free up space in its overrun homeless shelter system to help deal with the influx of asylum seekers that are still flooding in.
“Removing this rule will help even more people into permanent housing as quickly as possible and will do something without overburdening taxpayers,” Adams said at a City Hall press conference.
Under the emergency rule, families and individuals staying in shelters will be able to immediately access city-funded rental assistance, otherwise known as the City Family Homelessness and Eviction Prevention Supplement, to help them with more permanent housing.
Acting Department of Social Services commissioner Molly Wasow Park said axing the 90-day rule would free up much-needed space in the already overburdened system.
“We are also using every tool at the city’s disposal to address the urgent need for shelter capacity as we respond to an ongoing humanitarian crisis,” she said.
“With this emergency rule change, we will build on the progress we are already making, moving more New Yorkers from shelter to permanent housing, while freeing up much-needed capacity within the DHS shelter system to ensure that we are effectively continuing to provide shelter to asylum seekers in need.”
Adams added the city needed to find “cheaper ways” to house migrants amid the growing asylum seeker crisis.
“We’re still trying to find partners, we’re still trying to get the funding. And we have to find a cheaper way to do this because it’s just not sustainable,” the mayor said.
“We’re looking at many ways of how we’re going to deal with that influx of migrants and asylum seekers.
Our goal is to get people into permanent housing – that’s our goal. We can’t accomplish that goal if the inventory does not fit.”

The 90-day rule was part of a package of four bills that were passed by the city council last month
In addition to shortening shelter stays, the package also makes it easier for New Yorkers facing eviction to apply for a voucher, increases the income cut-offs for the program and bans landlords from deducting the cost of utilities from the city-issued rent check.
Aside from the length-of-stay requirement, Adams had voiced objecting to the other bills put forward in the package.
Sources suggested to The Post earlier this week that Hizzoner was enacting his executive power to end the 90-day rule so he can veto the other bills he opposes.