NYC Mayors Public Engagement Unit 

March 2022

What's NEW at PEU!
4 people sitting in a table, 2 students and 2 PEU staff members, each side facing each other.
 
At the Civics Week 2022 kickoff, PEU staff Joel and Ian discussed the importance of voting with students at Grover Cleveland High School. In partnership with DOE, PEU staff registered registered or pre-registered over 13,000 students to vote at DOE schools between March 7 - 11.

TEAM WINS

Civics Week

Every year during Civics Week (March 7 - 11), PEU coordinates the Student Voter Registration Drive (SVRD) at NYC schools across the city. This year, in partnership with the Department of Educations (DOE), the Civic Engagement Commission, and the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA), PEU visited more than 500 classrooms and registered or pre-registered more than 13,000 high school students!

“By voicing our opinions, we are making it known that we want to be heard and make changes. We are the future of our communities.” - Student from Grover Cleveland High School

Civic engagement continues beyond Civics Week, and we can't wait to see these young leaders become the future of our communities!

Tax Prep

In partnership with DCWP, PEU sent peer-to-peer text messages to more than 185,000 New Yorkers in zip codes with low-filing rates. The outreach was focused on providing information about the Child Tax Credit (CTC), Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), and NYC free tax preparation services. PEU followed up by phone to support those who needed help scheduling an appointment with a certified tax preparer at one of the City’s partner sites. If you or anyone you know is looking for assistance filing taxes, please visit nyc.gov/TaxPrep.

Affordable Connectivity Program

Since January 2022, PEU has called thousands of New Yorkers in TRIE neighborhoods to let them know about the Affordable Connectivity Program - an FCC benefit program that helps ensure households can afford the broadband they need for work, school, healthcare, and more. Through this outreach, PEU successfully connected over 1,000 eligible New Yorkers to the benefit. Learn more about ACP and find resources to promote the program at nyc.gov/PEUResources.

Tenant Helpline

PEU’s Tenant Support Unit (TSU) reached out to over 700 tenants on the Helpline in one week! Since the start of the Helpline in 2019, TSU has responded to over 90K helpline inquiries. If you or someone you know needs assistance, including information on the Right to Counsel, call 311 and ask for the Tenant Helpline to speak to a PEU Specialist.

Eviction Moratorium Response

In response to the end of the Eviction Moratorium, TSU has conducted proactive outreach to more than 60,000 tenants at-risk of eviction, using phone calls and door-to-door canvassing to connect them with free legal support through the Office of Civil Justice (OCJ) and other critical resources that can help keep them in their homes.
Screenshot from the facebook live town hall. Text in screenshot reads 'Questions about your lease? Are you behind on rent? Are you in housin court? Call 311 and ask for the Tenant Helpline to get free help from an N Y C tenant support specialist'.
 

Thank you Jasmin (PEU), Shaina (MOIA), Greta (MOPT), Lydia (MOIA), and Kristen (PEU) for this Know Your Rights Town Hall for Tenants! Missed it? You can watch it using this link!

Rent Freeze

Shout out to the Rent Freeze team supporting the outreach for Homeowner Tax Exemption in advance of the March 15 deadline! The team supported virtual presentations for Neighborhood Housing Services and Center For Independence of the Disabled.

Home Support Unit

PEU launched a joint campaign with DHS, assisting with completing the client-facing application for Emergency Housing Vouchers (EHV) to improve efficiencies in the application process. The Home Support Unit (HSU) is also working closely with community partners to raise awareness about opportunities for landlords and brokers around working with voucher holders and has conducted several presentations with partners including Neighborhood Housing Services of Queens (NHSQ). HSU experienced its best month of landlord recruitment, ensuring the housing pipeline from obtaining a voucher to getting housed is as quick and efficient as possible!

GetCoveredNYC

GetCoveredNYC, PEU’s team of Public Health Educators, continues to reach out to communities to identify uninsured New Yorkers and connect them to healthcare enrollers. This week, the team hosted a meet and greet with dozens of enrollment partners from NYC's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) to ensure that our mutual clients are receiving the most up to date information and the best care possible as we guide them through the enrollment process.
PEU team member knocking on a door and showing his ID.
 

Knock knock NYC, it's PEU at your door! Shout out to our Tenant Support Specialists who canvassed at a priority building in the Bronx with emergency issues. After working with partner agencies and communicating with the management company, they were able to assure tenants that management will continue to follow up on their issues. They also collected applications and documents to help tenants complete rent freeze application renewals.

If you need free housing assistance, NYC residential tenants can visit https://nyc.gov/TSU for more information.

STAFF SPOTLIGHT
Photo of Gloria holding a GetCoveredNYC flyer in Korean. Behind her is the American flag and Korean flag, and a sign that says KCS Community Center 

GetCoveredNYC Specialist Gloria Yun has been a key link between PEU and the Korean community in NYC. Gloria not only connects New Yorkers to health coverage in both English and Korean, but she has also been working closely with community-based organizations such as KCS, the Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York, in compiling and translating a directory of healthcare services. Gloria serves as a GetCoveredNYC point of contact listed in this resource. Because low rates of health care utilization are a serious issue in the Korean community, this directory will be a vital resource for increasing health care access for the Korean community. Gloria presented in Korean and English about the new directory at the press conference on March 25 at KCS in Queens, sharing this important information with approximately 200,000 Korean residents of NYC. Thank you Gloria for your hard work!

TWEET OF THE MONTH
Screenshot from a twitter post that reads 'Save on tax preparation fees by filing with NYC #FreeTaxPrep! IRS certified VITA/TCE volunteer preparers can file your taxes VIRTUALLY and help you claim refund-boosting tax credits like the Earned Income Tax Credit (#EITC) and Child Tax Credit. https://on.nyc.gov/2ANenDN' There is a picture of a woman wearing a hijab pointing up to the text 'Changes to tax credits mean more money for you when you file'. Bottom right corner of the picture it says N Y C Free Tax Prep in a light blue box. 

IN THE NEWS

  • Korea Daily: 한인사회 위한 의료서비스 주소록 발표 (Announcement of Health Directory of Services for Korean Community) March 25, 2022

  • NBC New York: Civics Week Underway in New York City Schools March 14, 2022

  • Queens Chronicle: Civics Week Kicks Off March 10, 2022

  • Harlem World Magazine: Civics Week 2022 Kicks Off Civic Engagement And Voter Registration Drive In NYC Schools March 7, 2022

  • World Journal: 禁逼遷令到期 租客仍可申請援助免遭驅逐 (Tenants can still apply for aid to avoid eviction as eviction ban expires) March 5, 2022

  • Chelsea Community News: This Thursday, a Virtual Town Hall for Tenants March 2, 2022

ANNOUNCEMENTS & RESOURCES
Text reads: Get Covered Day of Action, Enroll in health insurance today! April 6 nyc.gov/GetCoveredNYC. There is a graphic design of people holding oversized medical care related items like medication and a stethoscope. The logos of the NY State of Health, NYC Department of Health, the Public Engagement Unit, and Get Covered NYC appear. 
  • GetCovered Day of Action will be held on April 6, 2022! Find resources for posting on social media on April 6 at on.nyc.gov/GetCoveredDOA and join our town hall at 6pm at on.nyc.gov/GetCoveredTownHall.

  • And don’t forget: Enroll by April 15 to ensure you have health insurance starting May 1, 2022. Go to nyc.gov/GetCoveredNYC, call 311 and ask for GetCoveredNYC, or text CoveredNYC to 877877. Learn more with our online information session in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, and Bengali

  • The deadline to file your taxes is April 18. Free tax prep is available to New Yorkers who have an income of $72,000 or less: nyc.gov/TaxPrep

  • If you are interested in applying for cash assistance or SNAP, visit https://a069-access.nyc.gov/accesshra/.

  • Mental health counselors are available 24 hours a day to provide free support in many languages. You can contact them directly by calling 1-888-NYC-WELL.

  • NYC Fair Fares: Eligible New York City residents can get a 50% discount on eligible transportation. Help us to spread the word by sharing this HRA toolkit or check your eligibility at nyc.gov/fairfares or call 311.
4 staff members wearing t-shirts that say N Y C Mayor's Public Engagement Unit and DemocracyNYC
 

PEU staff at the Student Voter Registration Drive in NYC high schools.
10 staff members wearing t-shirts that say N Y C Mayor's Public Engagement Unit and DemocracyNYC
 

PEU staff at the Student Voter Registration Drive in NYC high schools.

About the Public Engagement Unit (PEU)

The NYC Public Engagement Unit (PEU) was created in 2015 to develop a new model for government outreach, using community organizing principles to re-envision how the City provides services to its most vulnerable communities. Rather than expecting constituents to navigate a complex City bureaucracy to get the help they need, PEU adopts grassroots tactics to meet residents where they are — at their doors and on their phones, in their social media feeds and in their communities. PEU combines this proactive outreach with comprehensive case management, and in doing so, combats disillusionment and builds long-term relationships between New Yorkers and their government.
2 GetCoveredNYC specialists at a health fair, behind a GetCoveredNYC table with informational flyers
 

TSU Specialists at the 3/25 Tenant Resource Fair in the Bronx

2 PEU staff members holding NYC Free Tax Prep brochures in front of Knickerbocker Avenue M train Station.
 

Find us out in Brooklyn, spreading the word about NYC Free Tax Prep!

: 2 TSU specialists with 3 visitors at the Tenant Resource Fair
 

GCNYC Specialists at the 3/18 Health Fair in Brooklyn

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