Public Advocate outlines recommendations for transformed mental health infrastructure supporting all New Yorkers
Public Advocate Issues Updated Roadmap for Mental Health Transformation
Public Advocate Jumaane Williams released his third comprehensive report on the city’s mental health infrastructure, this time addressing recommendations directly to Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani. The report builds on studies from 2019 and 2022, documenting progress while revealing persistent gaps in the city’s response to mental health crises and homelessness. “We have now been through two mayors since my first report, and seen far too little progress in the years since the original report was released,” Williams wrote. “With the coming of a new era in City Hall comes a new opportunity for the deeper systemic change New Yorkers desperately need.”
Progress and Persistent Gaps
The Williams report documents meaningful growth in safe haven beds, the low-barrier shelter sites providing temporary housing with specialized services. In 2019, the city operated just 667 beds. By 2022, that number had increased to 4,000. The Adams administration added another 900 beds as part of a 650 million dollar plan targeting street homelessness. Yet the report emphasizes that most clients exit the safe haven system without securing permanent housing. Although some enter substance use treatment or connect with family, broader housing barriers prevent the “continuum of care” that advocates recognize as necessary for lasting solutions.
Non-Police Mental Health Response Expansion
The 2019 Williams report recommended development of non-police response for non-criminal mental health emergencies, pointing to the CAHOOTS program operating in Eugene, Oregon, as a potential model. The city launched the B-HEARD pilot in 2021 for non-criminal mental health responses, though the program fails to guarantee civilian response due to staffing limitations and operational constraints. The latest report highlights improvements in B-HEARD while acknowledging it remains far from comprehensive citywide implementation. Mamdani’s proposed Department of Community Safety draws inspiration from CAHOOTS and intends to overhaul B-HEARD under the new agency structure. The plan commits to expanding the program to place at least one team in every neighborhood, with multiple teams in areas with greatest need.
Police and Community Safety Balance
Williams’ report addresses the evolving role of New York Police Department involvement in mental health responses, particularly through neighborhood coordination officers. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, whom Mamdani will retain, recently established a Quality of Life Division this year. The unit’s response to homeless encampments and public drug use raises concerns among advocates about return to “broken windows policing” approaches historically linked to discriminatory enforcement.
Involuntary Commitment Concerns
The Adams administration pushed for lowering the bar for involuntary commitments at the state level last year, making it easier for the city to order mental health evaluations. Williams’ latest report recommends “forceful oversight to prevent abuses, to determine whether people in the field can accurately, fairly, equitably assess individuals under the new criteria and provide help rather than perpetuate harm.” This recommendation balances recognition of genuine mental health crises requiring intervention with protection against abuses of expanded commitment authority.
Mamdani’s Mental Health Commitment
The incoming mayor has pledged 362.8 million dollars toward unprecedented mental health investment as part of the new Department of Community Safety. This substantial commitment represents serious acknowledgment of mental health system failures documented in Williams’ work. Advocates now watch to see whether Mamdani translates campaign promises into structural change addressing systemic gaps Williams has documented across three administrations. For comprehensive coverage of the Williams mental health reports, see Amsterdam News detailed reporting. Williams’ original 2019 report is available through Public Advocate’s official archives.
