#The clock is ticking on getting federal rent aid out to needy NYers

One week after The Post called out the state’s horrific delay in sending needy tenants the $2.4 billion in relief available under the federal CARES Act, Sen. Chuck Schumer followed up.

“Thousands and thousands of New York tenants could be deprived of critical rent relief checks if the state doesn’t move more quickly on getting this money out,” Schumer warned, demanding the state Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance “move heaven and earth to fix the mess, pick up the pace and get this federal money out the door before it’s too late for tenants and landlords.”

Property owners need the rent payments to cover maintenance, property taxes and other expenses. Tenants, meanwhile, fear being kicked out when the state’s eviction moratorium expires at the end of August.

The CARES Act passed Congress in January, but the Legislature didn’t authorize the state program until it passed the budget in April, and it wasn’t until June 1 that OTDA opened the application process. Schumer and advocates complain the online application process is cumbersome, unreliable and inaccessible to tenants without computers and Wi-Fi.

The federal program only has three requirements: Tenants must show 1) they experienced pandemic-related financial difficulties, 2) fell behind on their rent and 3) are at risk of homelessness. The grant covers up to one year of rent and utilities, plus three months of future rent.

Anthony Farmer, an OTDA spokesman, told The Post that $130,000 in initial payouts went out July 19 to a test batch of applicants and said the rest of the money will start rolling out “in the coming weeks.”

The clock is ticking.