Horizontal banner Graphic of group of staff with 2023 Year in Review, NYC Mayor's Public Engagement Unit written on over image in white letters 

Happy New Year from PEU!

As we begin a new year, we’re reflecting on everything we accomplished in 2023. Good government doesn't wait for those in need to seek assistance—it actively reaches out to make the process of working with the City as smooth as possible. That’s what we did in 2023, and will continue to do in 2024.

Using a combination of data, digital tools, and grassroots efforts, we’re proactively reaching out to New Yorkers to ensure that life-changing resources don’t go unused. Some highlights from the past year:

  • The Special Projects Team reached out to 21,000 New Yorkers offering information about how to get a refund for benefits stolen from EBT accounts
  • Our Tenant Helpline went LIVE and received roughly 41,000 calls ☎️
  • GetCoveredNYC supported over 6,400 New Yorkers by providing critical information about how to navigate health insurance options and other health-related resources 📈
  • Our Home Support Unit worked with homeowners and brokers to house over 2,400 families 🏘️

We’re so proud of what we accomplished (in partnership with many of you) this year, and invite you to take a trip down memory lane with us. And of course, happy new year!

Reflections and Wins from 2023

Expanding Benefits Outreach
Purple graphic featuring a background of NYC buildings and the statue of liberty, with snapshots of the PEU Special Projects team at events throughout the year and text that reads Special Projects Year In Review 2023

PEU’s Special Projects Team (SPT) was hard at work this year connecting New Yorkers to City resources, in addition to expanding our scope of work to provide comprehensive benefits screenings. SPT creatively leveraged technology, partnerships, and interagency resources to support New Yorkers this year. The team raised awareness about Fair Fares, discounted internet, SNAP Skimming, City job openings, and more. SPT was also on the frontlines doing its part to assist asylum seekers, scheduling thousands of appointments for work authorization and asylum application support.

Supporting New York City’s Tenants
Sky blue graphic featuring a background of NYC buildings and the statue of liberty, with snapshots of the PEU Tenant Support Unit at events throughout the year and text that reads Tenant Support Unit Year In Review 2023

PEU’s Tenant Support Unit pairs proactive outreach with ongoing support to protect NYC tenants. Our Tenant Support Unit launched our live operator Tenant Helpline this summer to better assist tenants experiencing housing crises. We also expanded our Rent Freeze outreach with hyper-targeted canvassing and tabling at Older Adult Town Halls, in partnership with the Department of Aging and Mayor Adams. Finally, we’ve been hitting the streets to educate New Yorkers about illegal evictions in neighborhoods at high risk. All this in addition to routine canvassing and case management to ensure NYC tenants have what they need.

Getting New Yorkers Covered
Blue Graphic featuring a background of NYC buildings and the statue of liberty, with snapshots of the PEU GetCoveredNYC team at events throughout the year and text that reads GetCoveredNYC Year In Review 2023

GetCoveredNYC helps connect New Yorkers to health insurance, primary care, and other key benefits to keep them healthy. In addition to routine targeted phone outreach, office hours in key community locations, and ongoing case management, GetCoveredNYC spent 2023 hosting days of health insurance enrollment action, virtual info sessions, and our first Health Care Fair in the Bronx, connecting NYC Care members to primary care, helping New Yorkers renew their health insurance after the end of the Public Health Emergency, promoting health insurance literacy, providing veterans with a unique health care access pathway, and more.

Bringing New Yorkers Home
Green graphic featuring a background of NYC buildings and the statue of liberty, with snapshots of the PEU Home Support Unit at events throughout the year and text that reads Home Support Unit Year In Review 2023

Our Home Support Unit (HSU) continued to expand interagency and homeowner partnerships to ensure more homes for voucher holders. We coordinated dozens of open houses to connect homeowners and brokers to interested tenants, helped process paperwork and applications galore, launched a special large building project to expedite our viewing processes, kept in regular contact with our partners through a new educational monthly newsletter, sent thousands of mailers to recruit new partners, and developed new data dashboards to track our work. With this and more, we’re proud to have helped over 2,400 families move into new homes in 2023.

About the Public Engagement Unit (PEU)

The NYC Public Engagement Unit (PEU) uses 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, builds long-term relationships between New Yorkers and their government. Learn more about us at nyc.gov/peu.

Connect with PEU
  • Twitter: @MayorsPEU
  • Instagram: @mayorspeu
  • Facebook: @NYC Mayor's Public Engagement Unit
  • LinkedIn: /mayorspeu
  • Website: nyc.gov/MayorsPEU
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