County Opposes Faith Based Affordable Housing Act

S2297/A3647 Would Dramatically Accelerate Construction On Religious Property

New City, NY – County Executive Ed Day strongly opposes the proposed Faith-Based Affordable Housing Act (S2297/A3647) legislation.

"This legislation is a blatant attempt to override the rights of local communities and force high-density housing onto municipalities without their say," said County Executive Day. "Rockland County will not stand by while Albany once again tries to demolish home rule and local control and impose a one-size-fits-all housing policy that disregards the impact on our residents, infrastructure, and quality of life."

This legislation would significantly accelerate the construction approval process for housing developments on religious properties and “dramatically” accelerate the timeline on which affordable housing on religious property can be built while reducing bureaucratic hurdles.

It would allow houses of worship such as churches, temples, synagogues, and mosques, to bypass local zoning rules as long as they are building affordable housing that complies with “reasonable” density standards: 30 units per acre for small municipalities with less than 50,000 people and 50 units per acre for localities with more than 50,000 people.

While additional housing is a crucial need, Day warns Albany that this bill will do more harm than good by rapidly increasing development while stripping municipalities of the ability to responsibly plan for growth.

“We are not against development and in fact are addressing this very issue in Rockland in a multitude of smart and sensible ways, with the local municipalities having the ability to determine what is and isn’t right for their community,” concluded Day.

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