Lawmakers Enter NYC Veterans Shelter Amid Federal Funding Dispute

Two City Council members entered a homeless veterans shelter in Queens against the staff’s orders Thursday as they and other lawmakers increased pressure on the Mamdani administration to explain its rejection of federal funding for beds at the facility. Councilmember Julie Won, who represents the district where the Long Island City site is located, stated, “We have the legal authority to enter to provide oversight” of city shelters. Shelter workers informed Won and Councilmember Phil Wong — both Democrats — that they did not have permission to go further inside, but the pair proceeded and later described the conditions as alarming.

Won said the bed areas were cramped and that both staff and security guards urged her and Wong to leave. “This was not meant for residential living,” she said, adding that the conditions observed were not “humane living.” She waited more than three hours to pass the metal detector as staff told her she could not enter, according to her office.

The lawmakers’ visit follows a report by The City Reporter that the city had rejected a federal grant to support the Borden Avenue Veterans Residence due to concerns the award would require the city to discriminate against transgender veterans. The grant agreement, city officials said, included clauses from former President Donald Trump’s executive orders barring the promotion of “gender ideology” and “denial of the sex binary.” However, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs stated the city’s claim was “false” and that the city “voluntarily withdrew from the grant process” after learning of the award’s “terms and conditions.”

On Thursday, two City Council committees scheduled an oversight hearing on Oct. 21 to examine the city’s handling of homeless veterans. Councilmember Frank Morano (R-Staten Island), who chairs the veterans committee, said he will make the Borden Avenue controversy a “major focus of the hearing.” He noted that the Department of Homeless Services “will have an opportunity to explain publicly why the city chose to walk away from” the VA’s Grant and Per Diem program, which has funded the site for nearly two decades.

“I also want to understand why this had to be an either-or choice,” Morano said in a statement. “If the city disagrees with a federal policy, it can challenge that policy, but I want DHS to explain why it couldn’t preserve available federal funding while ensuring that every veteran, including transgender veterans, continued to be served.”

The Mamdani administration has not yet provided a detailed explanation for its decision, but the controversy highlights the tension between federal policy and local service provision. As the city grapples with housing insecurity and the needs of vulnerable neighbors, the situation underscores the importance of policies that reflect compassion and justice for all. Proverbs 31:8-9 reminds us to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, and to defend the rights of the vulnerable.

Source: Read the original report