Only slightly over 7,000 households have received money from New York State’s rent relief program launched two months ago. The initial rollout was the slowest in the nation, according to a report by the state watchdog. The program is to help low- and mid-income New Yorkers pay rent they missed because of financial strain during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns that have strangled the economy. The state opened up the program on June 1 and by July 30 received over 168,000 applications. Yet, by Aug. 9, only 7,072 households were paid any money, according to the report released on Aug. 16 by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli. The state has more than $2.3 billion in federal funds available for the program, but managed to pay out less than $100 million, the report says. In the first month after launch, the state made no payments, the only state in the union that has …