Senate Bill S6454

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  6454

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            January 13, 2016
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen. HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
  printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction  and
  Community Development

AN  ACT  to amend the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seven-
  ty-four, and the administrative code of  the  city  of  New  York,  in
  relation to penalties for owners of property who fail to file a proper
  or timely rent registration statement

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. The opening paragraph of paragraph 1 of  subdivision  a  of
section 12 of section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974, constituting
the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, as amended
by chapter 116 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
  Subject to the conditions and limitations of this paragraph, any owner
of housing accommodations in a city having a population of less than one
million  or a town or village as to which an emergency has been declared
pursuant to section three, who, upon complaint of a  tenant  or  of  the
state  division  of housing and community renewal, is found by the state
division of housing and community renewal, after a  reasonable  opportu-
nity to be heard, to have collected an overcharge above the rent author-
ized  for a housing accommodation subject to this act shall be liable to
the tenant for a penalty equal to [three] FIVE times the amount of  such
overcharge  FOR  A  FIRST OFFENSE AND TEN TIMES THE AMOUNT OF SUCH OVER-
CHARGE FOR ANY SUBSEQUENT OVERCHARGES. In no  event  shall  such  treble
damage penalty be assessed against an owner based solely on said owner's
failure  to  file a proper or timely initial or annual rent registration
statement. If the owner establishes by a preponderance of  the  evidence
that  the  overcharge was neither willful nor attributable to his negli-
gence, the state division of housing and community renewal shall  estab-
lish  the  penalty  as the amount of the overcharge plus interest at the
rate of interest payable on a judgment pursuant to section five thousand
four of the civil practice law and rules. (i) Except  as  to  complaints
filed  pursuant  to  clause  (ii) of this paragraph, the legal regulated
rent for purposes of determining an overcharge, shall be  deemed  to  be

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                           LBD13334-01-5

S. 6454                             2

the rent indicated in the annual registration statement filed four years
prior  to  the most recent registration statement, (or, if more recently
filed, the initial registration statement) plus in each case any  subse-
quent  lawful  increases  and  adjustments. Where the amount of rent set
forth in the annual rent registration statement filed four  years  prior
to  the most recent registration statement is not challenged within four
years of its filing, neither such rent nor service of  any  registration
shall  be  subject  to  challenge  at  any  time  thereafter. (ii) As to
complaints filed within ninety days of the  initial  registration  of  a
housing  accommodation,  the legal regulated rent for purposes of deter-
mining an overcharge shall be deemed to be the rent charged on the  date
four  years prior to the date of the initial registration of the housing
accommodation (or, if the housing accommodation was subject to this  act
for less than four years, the initial legal regulated rent) plus in each
case,  any  lawful  increases and adjustments. Where the rent charged on
the date four years prior to the date of the initial registration of the
accommodation cannot be established, such rent shall be  established  by
the  division.  Where  the  amount  of rent set forth in the annual rent
registration statement filed four years prior to the most recent  regis-
tration  statement  is  not  challenged within four years of its filing,
neither such rent nor service of any registration shall  be  subject  to
challenge at any time thereafter.
  S  2. The opening paragraph of subdivision  a of section 26-516 of the
administrative code of the city of New York, as amended by  chapter  116
of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
  Subject  to  the  conditions  and limitations of this subdivision, any
owner of housing accommodations who, upon complaint of a tenant,  or  of
the  state  division  of  housing and community renewal, is found by the
state division of housing and  community  renewal,  after  a  reasonable
opportunity  to be heard, to have collected an overcharge above the rent
authorized for a housing accommodation subject to this chapter shall  be
liable  to  the  tenant  for  a  penalty equal to [three] FIVE times the
amount of such overcharge FOR A FIRST OFFENSE AND TEN TIMES  THE  AMOUNT
OF  SUCH  OVERCHARGE  FOR  ANY SUBSEQUENT OVERCHARGES. In no event shall
such treble damage penalty be assessed against an owner based solely  on
said  owner's  failure to file a timely or proper initial or annual rent
registration statement. If the owner establishes by a  preponderance  of
the  evidence that the overcharge was not willful, the state division of
housing and community renewal shall establish the penalty as the  amount
of  the  overcharge  plus  interest.  (i)  Except as to complaints filed
pursuant to clause (ii) of this paragraph, the legal regulated rent  for
purposes  of  determining  an overcharge, shall be the rent indicated in
the annual registration statement filed four years  prior  to  the  most
recent  registration statement, (or, if more recently filed, the initial
registration  statement)  plus  in  each  case  any  subsequent   lawful
increases  and  adjustments.  Where  the amount of rent set forth in the
annual rent registration statement filed four years prior  to  the  most
recent registration statement is not challenged within four years of its
filing,  neither  such  rent  nor  service  of any registration shall be
subject to challenge at any time thereafter.    (ii)  As  to  complaints
filed within ninety days of the initial registration of a housing accom-
modation,  the  legal  regulated  rent  shall  be  deemed to be the rent
charged on the date four years prior to the date of the  initial  regis-
tration  of  the housing accommodation (or, if the housing accommodation
was subject to this chapter for less than four years, the initial  legal
regulated rent) plus in each case, any lawful increases and adjustments.

S. 6454                             3

Where  the  rent charged on the date four years prior to the date of the
initial registration of the accommodation cannot  be  established,  such
rent shall be established by the division.
  S 3. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that
  a.  the amendments to the opening paragraph of paragraph 1 of subdivi-
sion a of section 12 of the emergency tenant protection act of  nineteen
seventy-four  made  by  section one of this act shall expire on the same
date as such act expires and shall not affect the expiration of such act
as provided in section 17 of chapter 567 of the laws of 1974; and
  b. the amendments to section 26-516 of chapter 4 of title  26  of  the
administrative  code of the city of New York made by section two of this
act shall expire on the same date as such  law  expires  and  shall  not
affect  the  expiration  of such law as provided under section 26-520 of
such law.