Senate Bill S494

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

                                   494

                       2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 9, 2013
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sen. STAVISKY -- 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  administrative code of the city of New York, in
  relation to rent reduction based upon a failure to  maintain  services
  for  purposes of the rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-
  nine

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

  Section  1.  Section  26-514 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:
  S 26-514  Maintenance of services.  In order to collect a rent adjust-
ment  authorized  pursuant to the provisions of subdivision d of section
26-510 of this chapter an owner must file with  the  state  division  of
housing  and  community  renewal, on a form which the commissioner shall
prescribe, a written certification that he or  she  is  maintaining  and
will  continue to maintain all services furnished on the date upon which
the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four  becomes  a
law or required to be furnished by any state law or local law, ordinance
or regulation applicable to the premises. In addition to any other reme-
dy  afforded by law, any tenant may apply to the state division of hous-
ing and community renewal, for a reduction in the rent to the  level  in
effect  prior  to  its most recent adjustment and for an order requiring
services to be maintained as provided in this section,  and the  commis-
sioner shall so reduce the rent if it is found that the owner has failed
to  maintain  such  services. SUCH REDUCTION SHALL BE RETROACTIVE TO THE
DATE OCCURRING THIRTY DAYS AFTER THE DATE UPON WHICH THE TENANT  APPLIED
TO  THE  DIVISION  FOR  SUCH A REDUCTION. The owner shall also be barred
from applying for or collecting any further rent increases. The restora-

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

                                                           LBD03222-01-3

S. 494                              2

tion of such services shall result in  the  prospective  elimination  of
such  sanctions. The owner shall be supplied with a copy of the applica-
tion and shall be permitted to file an answer thereto. A hearing may  be
held  upon  the  request of either party, or the commissioner may hold a
hearing upon his or her own motion. The commissioner may consolidate the
proceedings for two or more petitions applicable to the same building or
group of buildings or development. If the commissioner  finds  that  the
owner  has  knowingly filed a false certification, it shall, in addition
to abating the rent, assess the owner with the reasonable costs  of  the
proceeding,  including  reasonable attorneys' fees, and impose a penalty
not in excess of two hundred fifty dollars for each false certification.
  The amount of the reduction in rent ordered by the state  division  of
housing  and community renewal under this [subdivision] SECTION shall be
reduced by any credit, abatement or offset in rent which the tenant  has
received pursuant to section two hundred thirty-five-b of the real prop-
erty law, that relates to one or more conditions covered by such order.
  S  2.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
have become a law and shall apply to all applications for reductions  in
rent pending on the effective date of this act or filed on or after such
date   with the state division of housing and community renewal pursuant
to the provisions of section 26-514 of the administrative  code  of  the
city  of New York; provided that the amendments to section 26-514 of the
rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine  made  by  section
one  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.