Metropolitan Council on Housing Stronger Rent Laws

re the RGB Meets... Protest for Stronger Rent Laws Tuesday, May 3, 2011 - 4:30 PM  What's worse than the Rent Guidelines Board's unfair rent hikes? No limits on rent increases at all! The RGB votes on maximum rent increases for 1 million rent-stabilized apartments - but the entire rent-regulation system itself is set to expire on June 15. In over 300,000 apartments that have been lost to vacancy destabilization, there is no maximum rent. Increases can be 10 times what the RGB votes!  Protest to Renew Our Rent Laws & End Destabilization! Fairness at the RGB!  Tuesday, May 3, 2011 - 4:30 PM - Protest   Cooper Union - 7 E. 7th St. at the Bowery Subway: 6 to Astor Place, N/R to 8th Street  The RGB's deliberations on rent increases begin at 5:30 PM  Saturday: Flyering in Brooklyn For Stronger Rent Laws! Help get the word out to your neighbors about the urgent need to mobilize around the renewal and strengthening of our rent-regulation laws. Rent-Laws Flyering in Brooklyn  Saturday, April 28, 2011 - 11 AM to 1 PM Q to Prospect Park  Meet at 11 AM outside of an exit from the Prospect Park stop on the Q train, on Lincoln Rd. between Flatbush & Ocean Aves.     (Latecomers: Flyering will occur in that area.)  Come to the Prospect-Lefferts Gardens Neighborhood Association (PLGNA) event "A Beautiful Neighborhood Is a Clean and Affordable Neighborhood." Join PLGNA members and Met Council on Housing members in flyering, educating, and recruiting our neighbors to join the fight to renew and strengthen our rent laws!   Volunteers Needed:  Help Us Prepare a Mailing to Tenants! The June 15 deadline to renew our rent-regulation laws is fast approaching, and Met Council on Housing is preparing a mailing to thousands of members to encourage them to get more engaged in the fight for stronger rent laws.   We need your help in folding, stuffing, sealing, and stamping the envelopes! Bring a friend and make it a social event as you contribute your time to the cause! Come for any amount of time that works for you (email in advance to confirm):  Planned Mailing Days from Met Council on Housing's NoHo/Village Office  Monday, May 2 - afternoon & evening (until 7:30) Thursday, May 5 - afternoon  Friday, May 6 - afternoon  Monday, May 9 - afternoon & evening (until 7:30) To confirm, and to get directions, please email:tania@metcouncil.net  Housing Notebook Voice of the Tenant Movement   Scott Sommer will host Housing Notebook on Monday, May 2, 2011, at 8 PM. The call-in number is 212-209-2900.  Housing Notebook, a production of the Metropolitan Council on Housing, normally airs Mondays on WBAI, 99.5 FM, from 8 to 9 PM in the New York metropolitan area, and on the World Wide Web at www.wbai.org. Programs are archived for 90 days at www.archive.wbai.org News You May Have Missed   Deal will fix buildings ailing in foreclosure More than 1,000 tenants who lived in declining conditions as their buildings fell victim to the foreclosure crisis now have a new landlord who is promising to make millions of dollars in repairs. End of a maligned anti-homelessness program creates more problems for the city The Work Advantage program, designed to help homeless families leave the shelter system, has been widely criticized as costly and ineffective. In a cruel twist, New York City announced the abrupt end to the program, but with no plans to replace it with another rental-assistance program, leaving many at risk of returning to the shelters.

ARE YOU A MEMBER OF MET COUNCIL ON HOUSING? Join the Metropolitan Council on Housing today and get involved in the fight for decent, affordable housing!    Our members are the heart and soul of our work - leading our campaigns, volunteering, and providing nearly all of our financial support! We depend on the efforts, and the membership dues, of people like you, for everything that we do. To become a member and learn about the important work of Met Council on Housing, go to:metcouncil.net/join.htm Members receive a free subscription to our monthly publication,Tenant/Inquilino.  TENANTS' RIGHTS TELEPHONE HOTLINE: Call Met Council on Housing's tenants' rights telephone hotline at 212-979-0611 between the hours of 1:30 and 5:00 PM on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, for brief answers to questions about your rights as a tenant, help in organizing a tenant association in your building, or referrals. TUESDAY NIGHT HOUSING CLINIC Met Council on Housing's free clinic offers tenants assistance with landlord-tenant disputes. We meet at the offices of the Cooper Square Committee, located at 61 East 4th Street in Manhattan, every Tuesday beginning at 6:30pm. By subway: 6 to Astor Place; F to 2nd Avenue; or N/R to 8th Street. Please bring all paperwork associated with your case.   NYC'S HEAT LAWS ARE IN EFFECT:   From October 1 through May 31, landlords must provide heat at the following levels: 6am-10pm: If the outside temperature falls below 55 degrees, the inside temperature must be at least 68 degrees everywhere in your apartment. 10pm-6am: If the outside temperature falls below 40 degrees, the inside temperature must be at least 55 degrees everywhere in your apartment. Hot water at a minimum of 120 degrees at the tap must be provided 24 hours a day, all year 'round.

In Solidarity, Metropolitan Council on Housing