January 30, 2026 — Today, the NYC Community Land Initiative (NYCCLI) alliance and Abolish the Tax Lien Sale Coalition issued the following statement:
“We applaud the City Council for overriding former Mayor Eric Adams’ veto of four critical bills that will create and preserve urgently needed affordable housing, as well as community and commercial spaces, across New York City.
“Introductions 570, 1407, 1419, and 1420 pave the way to permanently abolish the city’s notorious tax lien sale—a predatory system that has destabilized and extracted wealth from Black and Brown communities—and replace it with a publicly accountable land bank. Together these measures fundamentally transform how New York City manages the collection of property tax and other arrears, ending the 30-year privatization of this core public function that has enriched private investors while pushing low-income homeowners and tenants into deeper distress.
“We thank Council Members Sandy Nurse and Gale Brewer for championing this legislation, as well as the other City Council members who stood alongside us to bring these bills across the finish line.
“We look forward to working with the Council and Mayor Mamdani to ensure the measures enacted today are effectively implemented—preventing displacement and expanding opportunities for community land trusts (CLTs) to deliver deeply and permanently affordable, democratically controlled housing and other community-benefitting uses across New York City.
“In particular, we urge the administration to promptly apply for the required state approval to establish a New York City Land Bank, as instructed by Int. 570B, and to adopt NYCCLI’s recommendations to ensure the land bank prioritizes CLTs and other mission-driven entities when disposing of land. The land bank board of directors must reflect these and other community stakeholders to ensure accountability, transparency, and outcomes that benefit rather than exploit tax-distressed homeowners and communities.
“Similarly, while Int. 1407—prohibiting the City from selling tax liens to private investors—does not take effect until the end of 2028, the city can and must take action sooner to protect struggling homeowners and tenants. Make no mistake: we are counting on the Mayor to hold true to his campaign promise not to hold another lien sale during his administration.
“Finally, we urge the City Council to reintroduce and pass Int. 902B, the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA), a vital bill that will give tenants and communities a fair chance to stop property flipping and bring apartment buildings into stable, permanently affordable community ownership. The Council passed COPA in December with strong majority support but wrongly chose not to override outgoing Mayor Eric Adams’ unjust veto today.”
nyccli.org 