Since April 2020, the Benefits Plus Learning Center has been current on the changes to policy and procedures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the height of the pandemic there were many federal and state waivers to provide greater flexibility in the application process for cash benefit programs. However, many of these waivers have [...]

New York State’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) closed its application portal on January 20, 2023 at 9:00pm (EST). This means that the State is no longer accepting ERAP applications. Applications that were submitted before the closing of the portal will be processed in the order received in accordance to program rules. Applications of households with [...]

In 2022, NYC Department of Social Services’ (DSS) made major changes to rental subsidy programs, CityFHEPS and FHEPS. Below is a summary of these changes, which include increasing the maximum rental amount, establishing a new method to determine the subsidy amount, and enacting a rent reasonableness test. Increased Maximum Rent AmountsThe maximum rent amounts for both [...]

NYS Homes and Community Renewal’s Residential Emergency Services to Offer Repairs to the Elderly (RESTORE) program provides financial assistance for senior homeowners to make repairs that allow them to continue living independently in their homes. Governor Hochul signed legislation in August 2022 increasing the July-August 2022 Page 6 Benefits Plus E-Newsletter amount of time to complete [...]