After the state’s eviction moratorium expired at midnight, lawmakers gathered in Albany to discuss the possibility of another extension.

Steve Licata says he's retired and primarily depends on income from his rental property. He's hoping state lawmakers can reach a compromise on the eviction moratorium that is fair to landlords and tenants.

"You can't just eliminate the landlord from the picture and have the tenant stay in the house for free,” he says.

He says one of his tenants owes him 19 months’ worth of rent, or close to $40,000.

Thomas Maligno, director of the Public Advocacy Center at Touro College, has been working with a coalition that includes the courts and local governments. He has been reaching out to landlords and tenants to try and encourage them to apply for rent relief.

"We are very disappointed in the low numbers, much lower than we'd expected on both tenants and landlords applying,” he says.

Maligno says some don't know the program is available, while others had issues with the application process. He also says there may be an issue of legality for some landlords.

"Many landlords are renting apartments that are illegal and they don't want the government to be aware of that,” he says. “Many landlords, whether the apartment is legal or not, have not been reporting the rental income on their taxes."

Republican Sen. Robb Ortt, minority leader of the state Senate, says Gov. Kathy Hochul’s plan of calling back lawmakers for an “extraordinary session” with a goal of putting evictions on hold until January, is not an effective long-term solution.

"The real issue is, no one's going to apply for the ERAP money as long as there's no reason, if they can stay in their apartment, rent free as it is,” he says.