S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8290
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
May 13, 2009
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CAMARA -- read once and referred to the Committee
on Housing
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York and the
emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, in relation
to warehousing of housing accommodations and penalties therefor
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Legislative findings and intent. The legislature finds and
declares that each person in the state shall have a right to be housed
and that such right to housing is a basic human right.
The legislature further finds and declares that the practice of "ware-
housing", that is of intentionally withholding housing accommodations
from the housing market, including the withholding of apartments for
purposes of future co-operative apartment conversion, has contributed
significantly to the shortage of housing in this state, especially in
the city of New York.
The legislature further finds and declares that the practice of ware-
housing has violated the right to housing of many of the citizens and
residents of this state.
It is thus the intent of the legislature to eliminate the practice of
warehousing by providing strong penalties to deter such practice.
S 2. Section 26-412 of the administrative code of the city of New York
is amended by adding a new subdivision g to read as follows:
G. IT SHALL BE UNLAWFUL TO HARASS A TENANT TO OBTAIN VACANCY OF HIS OR
HER HOUSING ACCOMMODATION OR TO HAVE INTENTIONALLY WITHHELD A HOUSING
ACCOMMODATION FROM THE MARKET, INCLUDING WITHHOLDING SUCH ACCOMMODATION
FOR THE PURPOSE OF FUTURE CO-OPERATIVE APARTMENT CONVERSION. FOR THE
PURPOSES OF THIS SUBDIVISION, HARASSMENT CONSISTS OF ENGAGING IN A
COURSE OF CONDUCT OR REPEATEDLY COMMITTING ACTS WHICH ALARM OR SERIOUSLY
ANNOY A TENANT OR OTHER PERSON RESIDING IN THE TENANT'S HOUSING ACCOMMO-
DATION AND WHICH SERVE NO LEGITIMATE PURPOSE.
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00324-02-9
A. 8290 2
S 3. Paragraph 2 of subdivision c of section 26-516 of the administra-
tive code of the city of New York, as amended by chapter 116 of the laws
of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
(2) to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his or her housing
accommodation FROM THE MARKET, INCLUDING WITHHOLDING SUCH ACCOMMODATION
FOR THE PURPOSE OF FUTURE CO-OPERATIVE APARTMENT CONVERSION, the commis-
sioner may impose by administrative order after hearing, a civil penalty
for any such violation. Such penalty shall be in the amount of not less
than one thousand dollars nor more than five thousand dollars for each
such offense or for a violation consisting of conduct directed at the
tenants of more than one housing accommodation.
S 4. Paragraph 2 of subdivision c of section 26-516 of the administra-
tive code of the city of New York is amended to read as follows:
(2) to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his or her housing
accommodation OR TO HAVE INTENTIONALLY WITHHELD A HOUSING ACCOMMODATION
FROM THE MARKET, INCLUDING WITHHOLDING SUCH ACCOMMODATION FOR THE
PURPOSE OF FUTURE CO-OPERATIVE APARTMENT CONVERSION, the commissioner
may impose by administrative order after hearing, a civil penalty for
any such violation. Such penalty shall be in the amount of up to one
thousand dollars for a first such offense and up to twenty-five hundred
dollars for each subsequent offense or for a violation consisting of
conduct directed at the tenants of more than one housing accommodation.
S 5. Clause (ii) of paragraph 3 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:
(ii) to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his housing accom-
modation OR TO HAVE INTENTIONALLY WITHHELD A HOUSING ACCOMMODATION FROM
THE MARKET, INCLUDING WITHHOLDING SUCH ACCOMMODATION FOR THE PURPOSE OF
FUTURE CO-OPERATIVE APARTMENT CONVERSION, the commissioner may impose by
administrative order after hearing, a civil penalty for any such
violation. Such penalty shall be in the amount of not less than one
thousand dollars nor more than five thousand dollars for each offense or
for a violation consisting of conduct directed at the tenants of more
than one housing accommodation.
S 6. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amend-
ment to section 26-412 of the city rent and rehabilitation law made by
section two of this act shall remain in full force and effect only as
long as the public emergency requiring the regulation and control of
residential rents and evictions continues, as provided in subdivision 3
of section 1 of the local emergency housing rent control act; and
provided further that the amendment to section 26-516 of the rent
stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by sections three
and four of this act shall expire on the same date as such law expires,
unless section three of this act sooner expires, and shall not affect
the expiration of such law as provided under section 26-520 of such law;
and provided further that such amendment shall take effect after June
15, 2003 as provided in subdivision 6 of section 46 of chapter 116 of
the laws of 1997, or such other date as may be provided by an amendment
to such section 46, if any; and provided that section three of this act
shall expire and be deemed repealed when section four of this act takes
effect; and provided further that the amendment to section 12 of the
emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four made by section
five 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 576 of the laws of 1974, as amended.