With the city in a deep freeze, Mayor Zohran Mamdani has moved to pull back a new rule that would have sharply limited who could get into low-barrier "safe haven" shelter beds. The change lifts a six-month proof requirement that advocates warned would leave many people sleeping outside. The reversal lands in the middle of a brutal cold snap and days after the city's social services commissioner stepped down.
As reported by THE CITY, a City Hall spokesperson said the administration reviewed the measure and "decided not to implement it," halting a provision that had been set in motion under the prior administration. Service providers had argued the rule would put fresh obstacles in front of people trying to access low-threshold placements. A formal notice withdrawing the rule had not been posted in the City Record during the reporting period.
City records show the Department of Homeless Services amendment to Title 31 was adopted and published with an effective date of February 12, 2026. The rule directed the Joint Command Center to look for at least six months of documented street homelessness or intermittent shelter stays before referring people to stabilization or safe haven beds. That language remains online on the New York City Rules site and in City code §6-02. Officials had been preparing to flip the switch on the criteria this week before the administration backed off.
Advocates said the rule would be dangerous
Ten local nonprofits sent a letter urging Mamdani to reverse course, arguing that the six-month requirement was cruel on its face and ran directly counter to the whole point of low-barrier shelter, according to THE CITY. Legal advocates had already taken the city to court over an earlier attempt to tighten eligibility, in a lawsuit brought by the Urban Justice Center's Safety Net Project that argued the policy discriminated against newly arrived immigrants.
Commissioner resigns amid deadly cold
Amid the policy whiplash, the city's top social services official is heading for the exit. Gothamist reported that Department of Social Services Commissioner Molly Wasow Park submitted her resignation on February 9, saying weeks of uncertainty about her role had been "really taxing" on the agency. Her departure comes on the heels of sub-zero temperatures that officials say have been linked to at least 18 deaths in the city since late January, intensifying scrutiny of how quickly outreach teams and shelter placements reach people living outside.
What to watch next
For the moment, the administration says the six-month test is off the table and that overall placement criteria are under review. Advocates and legal groups say they are now waiting to see a formal withdrawal notice show up in the City Record and will be watching closely how outreach workers and the shelter system handle placements on the street. The reversal takes one immediate threat to low-barrier access out of play, but it leaves open the larger fights over shelter capacity, outreach staffing and how the city identifies and serves people who avoid official systems while winter drags on.
