(January 13, 2026) Urban Resource Institute (URI) commends Governor Kathy Hochul for centering affordability and public safety in her 2026 State of the State Address. As the nation’s largest provider of domestic violence shelter services, URI understands the profound challenges families face in securing safe and stable housing— challenges which have only been worsened by threats and actual reductions in federal funding that support housing programs. Actions at the federal level threaten the safety and housing security of millions of marginalized individuals and underscore the urgent need for robust, coordinated state leadership.
URI applauds the Governor’s $250 million investment in affordable housing, which will help deliver desperately needed units of safe, stable, and supportive housing. However, New Yorkers need deeper investments, particularly as the State navigates an ongoing housing crisis.
For survivors of violence and housing insecure families rebuilding their lives, access to childcare determines whether stability is possible. Lack of affordable or accessible childcare creates barriers to employment, housing retention, and access to supportive services. URI welcomes the Governor’s $1.2 million investment in the Child Care Assistance Program (CCAP), reaffirming the State’s commitment to affordable, safe childcare for marginalized families.
Modernizing victim compensation systems is critical. Implementing trauma-informed claims processes will reduce revictimization and improve access to safety and stability for survivors. URI supports these changes and urges continued investment in survivor-centered, trauma informed systems.
New York State has led the nation mobilizing against the threats to marginalized families by the Administration in Washington. In continuation of that leadership, the State must partner with New York City to identify contingency funding to bridge the gaps left by any interruptions in federal funding to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), the Child Care and Development Fund, and the Social Services Block Grant. These programs serve as lifelines for New York’s most marginalized populations, providing essential support to survivors of domestic violence and their families, low-income families, children, and individuals facing compounded barriers to safety, housing, and economic security. Any gap in these programs would be catastrophic, resulting in service disruptions that place survivors and families at increased risk.
Governor Hochul has a long track record of leadership protecting survivors of violence and their families, which is reflected in her SOTS’ proposals to strengthen orders of protection by automatically extending them when defendants fail to appear in court; closing a loophole that can leave survivors vulnerable, and to modernize sexual offense evidence collection kit procedures so that survivors can retain higher degrees of anonymity and consent in reporting their evidence, as the measures include introducing anonymous reporting and extended retention periods.
At the same time, it’s vital that we do not treat violence as an inevitability. We can stop violence with targeted and robust investments in evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies targeted at youth and in communities with the highest rates of violence. These investments should prioritize restorative justice and community-based interventions, complementing criminal justice systems rather than relying on them as the primary tool.
This prevention-first vision is also an affordability strategy; reducing long-term public costs associated with emergency shelter, healthcare, incarceration, and homelessness, while strengthening the economic stability of families and communities.
URI is eager to continue its partnership with the Hochul Administration to ensure survivors and their families have the housing, childcare, and services they need to build safe, independent futures.
