www.jasonmurillofornyc.com
https://x.com/JasonMurilloNY
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What type of housing do you live in? NYCHA
Are you now, or have you ever been a landlord? No
If yes, how many units and briefly describe what your experience has been.
Does your campaign accept contributions from real estate developers (including related individuals), corporate lobbyists, organizations that participate in the carceral system, and/or landlords? No
Have you ever worked in, or had another affiliation with, the Real Estate industry? No
Have any of your campaign or advisory staff held a position as a corporate lobbyist or an executive role with the Real Estate industry? No
If so, how can we be assured you will have tenants’ interests in mind?
Do you believe housing is a human right? Yes
If so, what does that mean to you, and if not, why not? Housing is a fundamental right, not a privilege. Every New Yorker deserves safe, stable, and affordable housing. I will fight to protect public housing, stop unjust evictions, and ensure that hardworking families and vulnerable residents have a place to call home.
What actions have you taken in the past to fight for housing justice? I have held rallys for public housing and protecting the rights of all tenants, to testifying at City Hall & at tenant meetings, including tenant outreach https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YjR5rZTzpMM
What are the most pressing housing issues, and what would you do as an elected official to address them? ### **Most Pressing Housing Issues in NYC & Solutions**
1. **NYCHA Crisis & Public Housing Neglect**
– **Issue**: Decades of mismanagement, underfunding, and deteriorating conditions in public housing.
– **Solution**: Declare a **NYCHA state of emergency**, prioritize **immediate repairs**, enforce **transparency in spending**, and **block RAD/PACT evictions** while renegotiating agreements in good faith.
2. **Soaring Rent & Affordable Housing Shortage**
– **Issue**: Skyrocketing rents push out low-income and middle-class residents, with developers prioritizing luxury units over affordable housing.
– **Solution**: Implement **rent freezes**, strengthen tenant protections, **expand affordable housing construction**, and enforce **real affordability** in new developments.
3. **Homelessness & Lack of Supportive Housing**
– **Issue**: Thousands of New Yorkers are homeless due to housing instability, mental health challenges, and lack of resources.
– **Solution**: Expand **supportive housing**, fund **mental health & addiction services**, and ensure shelters provide pathways to **permanent housing** instead of being a revolving door.
4. **Gentrification & Displacement of Longtime Residents**
– **Issue**: Rapid gentrification drives up costs, forcing working-class families, seniors, and small businesses out of their communities.
– **Solution**: Enforce **anti-displacement policies**, increase **homeownership opportunities for locals**, and **protect small businesses** from skyrocketing rents.
5. **Luxury Development & Misuse of Public Land**
– **Issue**: Developers prioritize high-end projects while city-owned land meant for affordable housing is underutilized.
– **Solution**: Redirect city resources to **build 100% affordable housing** on public land and **hold developers accountable** for truly affordable units.
Have you or anyone close to you (family, friend, etc) been evicted or been threatened with eviction? Yes
Have you ever had to fight a landlord for repairs or faced harassment? Yes
Do you believe that housing should be decommodified (publicly owned and tenant-controlled)?
Yes
Please explain your answer. Yes i do everyone should have a path to ownership
What is one rent and/or eviction protection you would enact if you had the opportunity?
### **Eviction Protection Solutions for NYC**
1. **Moratorium on RAD/PACT Evictions**
– Prevent unjust evictions of NYCHA residents by freezing RAD/PACT removals and renegotiating terms to protect tenants.
2. **Stronger Tenant Rights & Legal Support**
– Expand **Right to Counsel** for all low-income tenants facing eviction.
– Strengthen enforcement against illegal landlord harassment and forced evictions.
3. **Rent Stabilization & Anti-Gouging Measures**
– Implement **rent freezes** to stop predatory rent hikes that lead to displacement.
– Close loopholes that allow landlords to push tenants out for profit.
4. **Support for Struggling Homeowners & Small Landlords**
– Prevent **foreclosures** by providing financial assistance and mediation programs.
– Protect small landlords who keep rents affordable while cracking down on predatory corporate landlords.
5. **Emergency Rental Assistance & Housing Support**
– Expand funding for rental relief programs to help tenants avoid eviction due to temporary financial hardship.
– Ensure **homeless prevention programs** offer real pathways to stable housing.
Do you agree that all evictions are violent? No
Why or why not? Not all evictions are violent, but they can be deeply destabilizing and traumatic. Some evictions involve law enforcement physically removing tenants, which can escalate into confrontations. Others are more bureaucratic, where tenants are forced out due to legal proceedings, rent hikes, or landlord harassment. Even “peaceful” evictions can leave families homeless, disrupt communities, and cause lasting harm.
Do you support the concept of universal rent control? Yes
For decades the Rent Guidelines Board has fueled the affordability crisis it was created to address. Most NYC tenants are rent-burdened, and hundreds of thousands of families, primarily Black and brown, are forced to deprive themselves of necessities to keep a roof over their heads, while owners’ profits hover near the 40% mark. Do you support freezing or even rolling back rents given these circumstances?
Yes
Do you support proposals to revise the RGB to make it more responsive to the needs of the tenants it was created to protect? Yes
Why or why not? Yes i do support revising the RGB in support of tenant rights and protections.
Do you support the NYCHA 2.0 Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) and other privatization schemes? No
Please explain why or why not: My opposition to RAD aligns with my push to protect NYCHA residents from privatization and eviction risks.
NYCHA has suffered from chronic underfunding, neglect, and disrepair. What do you see as the best strategies to rectify these problems?
End Mismanagement & Increase Transparency
Conduct a full audit of NYCHA spending to root out waste and corruption.
Establish tenant oversight committees to ensure funds go directly to repairs, not bureaucracy.
Workforce Expansion for Faster Repairs
Hire and train more unionized public workers to fix elevators, heating, and plumbing.
Expand apprenticeship programs for NYCHA residents to work on building maintenance.
How would you use your office to put pressure on landlords to make repairs and stop harassing tenants?
Yes i would 1000% everyday!
Do you support regulating the 300,000 deregulated rent-stabilized apartments? Yes
Do you support significant expansion of HPD’s emergency repair program, including adequate funding, with the city correcting hazardous violations when the landlord doesn’t act promptly, then bills the landlord for the repairs and takes title to the building if the landlord doesn’t pay, keeping it as social housing? Yes
Why or why not? Yes i do
Do you support stronger penalties against landlords that practice source of income discrimination? Yes
Despite the city’s commitment to a right to counsel for low income families facing eviction in housing court, currently fewer than half of eligible tenants are getting lawyers. Meanwhile, landlords have pressed the courts to speed up the eviction process so they can take advantage of record high rents, negating efforts to reduce homelessness. Do you support fully funded right to counsel and slowing down the housing court eviction mill?
Yes
What other ideas do you have to address the housing crisis, and what is your strategy for accomplishing them?
Strategy to Address NYC’s Housing Crisis
1. **Declare a NYCHA State of Emergency** – Prioritize immediate repairs, increase transparency, and block RAD/PACT evictions.
2. **Enforce Rent Freezes & Tenant Protections** – Stop unjust rent hikes and strengthen eviction protections for vulnerable tenants.
3. **Expand Affordable Housing** – Develop **100% truly affordable units** on public land and hold developers accountable.
4. **Stop Displacement & Gentrification** – Implement **anti-displacement policies** to keep longtime residents and small businesses in their communities.
5. **Increase Support for Homeless & At-Risk Tenants** – Expand rental assistance, **supportive housing**, and mental health services.