Advocates say fear of property owners prevails over protections hailed by the governor
Taken from TRD New York
Over the weekend, Governor Kathy Hochul introduced greater protections for undocumented immigrants, signing legislation that makes the threat of reporting immigration status punishable by imprisonment.
In theory, the law protects undocumented tenants from landlords who might use the threat of deportation against them, for example, to warn tenants not to file complaints or fight eviction .
Tenant advocates and lawyers doubt that the protections, however well-intentioned, will make much of a difference for undocumented tenants .
To use the law, tenants would have to report harassment by their landlord. Hotlines already exist for handling complaints. But many undocumented residents are reluctant to take in a landlord, fearing they will be targeted again.
“Many undocumented tenants are very afraid to file anything,” said Andrea Shapiro, program manager for the tenant group at the Met Council on Housing.
In contrast, many endure the harassment.
Shapiro said landlords sometimes make indirect threats by asking tenants about their immigration status or implying they know a tenant is undocumented. The new law does not explicitly prohibit this.
During the pandemic, some landlords used tenants' actual or perceived immigration status to circumvent the eviction moratorium, filing false notices or ignoring hardship declarations to prevent tenants from appearing before a judge. Others refused to complete their portion of the emergency rental assistance application.
A city law extending similar protections offers a clue as to the likelihood that undocumented immigrants will use the new state statute to report harassment. The city's Human Rights Act protects undocumented tenants from discrimination by landlords, property managers, and brokers, including "eviction based on immigration status or national origin," and from less obvious threats, provided the tenants comply with local housing law.
Housing attorney Stephanie Rudolph said some tenants have used the law to file cases against landlords who had higher immigration status than a tenant to deny them housing. In theory, they could also use the law to file a lawsuit.
“I suppose it’s not so common only because people are afraid,” he said. “But it’s not unheard of either.”.
Even so, one problem with the city law, and one that could hinder the state's impact, is that many undocumented tenants are unaware that protections exist, whether because of language barriers or a lack of education about immigrants' rights.
“Many people may know that certain harassment is wrong and suspect that it’s not legal, but they’re still very afraid,” Rudolph said. “Other people don’t want to talk about it because they’re in danger from the threat.”.
Even so, Shapiro and Rudolph agreed that more protection is better than less, and that expanding the city's shield across the state is progress.
“But it doesn’t alleviate the likely fear and consequences of that point of influence for property owners,” Rudolph said.
