NY State Senate Bill 2019-S5142

Archive: Last Bill Status - Stricken

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Feb 12, 2020	recommit, enacting clause stricken
Jan 08, 2020	referred to housing, construction and community development
Apr 11, 2019	referred to housing, construction and community development

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A1268
Law Section:: New York City Administrative Code
Laws Affected:: Amd §26-504.2, NYC Ad Cd; amd §5, Emerg Ten Prot Act of 1974
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2009-2010: S5851
2011-2012: S57
2013-2014: S797
2015-2016: S174
2017-2018: S2028, S7105, A7373

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to statutes of limitations based on notices of deregulation.

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5142

SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:  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 the statute of limitations on notices of deregu-
lation

 
PURPOSE:

This bill will provide that the statute of limitations for challenges by
a tenant to a high rent decontrol of a rent-regulated apartment is
tolled during the time that the owner has not provided notice required
by existing law, decreasing the number of rent-regulated units improper-
ly deregulated.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

This bill provides that the limitations period for challenging deregu-
lation of a rent-regulated apartment and claim of overcharge is tolled
if the landlord fails to file and serve the appropriate notice.  The

bill also applies to housing accommodations that become vacant on or
after the date this bill would become law.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The Emergency Tenant Protection Act (ETPA) currently has a four-year
statute of limitations for challenging a legal rent. Also, the New York
City Administrative Code, section 26-516, and ETPA, section 12, require
owners to keep rent records for four years. This bill adds a new subdi-
vision (c) of section 26-504.2 of the New York City Administrative Code,
which provides that the periods for the examination of rental history
and claims of overcharge and improper deregulation are extended by the
period during which the owner does not comply with notice and filing
requirements.  In addition, it amends the ETPA to set forth requirements
for a landlord who seeks to deregulate a unit on grounds that the rent
has exceeded the high rent threshold to file a statement with the Divi-
sion of Housing and Community Renewal (DHCR) and to notify the tenants,
and tolls the statute of limitations during the time the landlord failed
to comply with these requirements.

The rent laws provide for the deregulation of apartments that become
vacant after the lawful rent reaches a certain threshold. Since the
right of a tenant to challenge the rent charged by their landlord
extends only for four years, a claim of "high rent vacancy deregulation"
becomes unchallengeable after four years. Therefore, an affected tenant
must be given notice not only of his or her right to challenge the claim
of deregulation, but also of the information necessary to understand the
owner's claim and to file a meaningful challenge. Where the owner fails
to provide the required notices for high-rent exemption, the most effec-
tive method of ensuring that tenants are given a meaningful opportunity
to challenge claims of deregulation and related rent overcharges is to
provide that the period to examine the rental history of an accommo-
dation not commence until such notices are provided.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2018: S7105 (Kavanagh) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Communi-
ty Development
2017: S2028 (Squadron) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Communi-
ty Development
2016: S174A (Squadron) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Communi-
ty Development
2015: 5174 (Squadron) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Community
Development
2013: 5797 (Squadron) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Community
Development
2014: 5797 (Squadron) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Community
Development
2013: 5797 (Squadron) - Referred to Housing, Construction, and Community
Development
2012: S57 (Squadron)/A1682 (Jeffries)- Referred to Housing,
Construction, and Community Development/ordered to third reading
2011: S57 (Squadron)/A1682 (Jeffries)- Referred to Housing,
Construction, and Community Development
2009: S5851(Squadron)/A7598 (Jeffries) - Referred to Rules/passed Assem-
bly 2010: 55851 (Squadron)/A7598 (Jeffries) - Referred to Housing,
Construction, and Community Development/passed Assembly

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Modest administrative costs associated with extending the statute of
limitations and with the HCR maintaining additional records.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately provided that: (a) the amendment
to section 26-504.2 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; (b) the amendments to section
5 of section 4 of the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seven-
ty-four made by section two 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;
and (c) the provisions of this act shall apply to housing accommodations
which became vacant on or after the effective date of this act.

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5142
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              April 11, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. KAVANAGH -- 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 and the
   emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, in  relation
   to the statute of limitations on notices of deregulation
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1.  Section 26-504.2 of the administrative code of the city of
 New York is amended by adding a new subdivision c to read as follows:
   C. NOTWITHSTANDING SECTION 26-516 OF  THIS  CHAPTER  AND  SECTION  TWO
 HUNDRED  THIRTEEN-A  OF  THE  CIVIL  PRACTICE LAW AND RULES, THE PERIODS
 PROVIDED FOR THEREIN FOR EXAMINATION OF THE RENTAL HISTORY OF THE ACCOM-
 MODATION FOR THE DETERMINATION OF AN OVERCHARGE AND WHETHER THE ACCOMMO-
 DATION IS SUBJECT TO THIS LAW ARE EXTENDED BY THE  PERIOD  DURING  WHICH
 THE OWNER IS NOT IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF SUBDIVISION B OF
 THIS SECTION.
   §  2. Paragraph 13 of subdivision a of section 5 of section 4 of chap-
 ter  576  of  the  laws  of  1974,  constituting  the  emergency  tenant
 protection act of nineteen seventy-four, as amended by section 8 of part
 A of chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
   (13)  (I) any housing accommodation with a legal regulated rent of two
 thousand dollars or more per month at any  time  between  the  effective
 date  of this paragraph and October first, nineteen hundred ninety-three
 which is or becomes vacant on or after the effective date of this  para-
 graph;  or, for any housing accommodation with a legal regulated rent of
 two thousand dollars or more per month at  any  time  on  or  after  the
 effective  date of the rent regulation reform act of 1997 and before the
 effective date of the rent act of 2011, which is or becomes vacant on or
 after the effective date of the rent regulation reform act of  1997  and
 before  the effective date of the rent act of 2011. This exclusion shall
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD02244-01-9

 S. 5142                             2
 
 apply regardless of whether the next tenant in occupancy or  any  subse-
 quent  tenant  in  occupancy  is  charged or pays less than two thousand
 dollars a month; or, for any housing accommodation with  a  legal  regu-
 lated rent of two thousand five hundred dollars or more per month at any
 time on or after the effective date of the rent act of 2011, which is or
 becomes  vacant on or after such effective date, but prior to the effec-
 tive date of the rent act of 2015; or, any housing accommodation with  a
 legal regulated rent that was two thousand seven hundred dollars or more
 per  month at any time on or after the effective date of the rent act of
 2015, which becomes vacant after the effective date of the rent  act  of
 2015,  provided, however, that starting on January 1, 2016, and annually
 thereafter, the maximum  legal  regulated  rent  for  this  deregulation
 threshold,  shall  also  be increased by the same percentage as the most
 recent one year renewal  adjustment,  adopted  by  the  applicable  rent
 guidelines  board.  An  exclusion pursuant to this paragraph shall apply
 regardless of whether the next tenant in  occupancy  or  any  subsequent
 tenant  in  occupancy actually is charged or pays less than two thousand
 seven hundred dollars a month.   Provided  however,  that  an  exclusion
 pursuant  to  this  paragraph  shall not apply to housing accommodations
 which became or become subject to this act (a) by  virtue  of  receiving
 tax  benefits  pursuant  to section [four hundred twenty-one-a] 421-A or
 [four hundred eighty-nine] 489 of the real property tax law,  except  as
 otherwise  provided  in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (f) of subdivision
 [two] 2 of section [four hundred twenty-one-a] 421-A of the real proper-
 ty tax law, or (b) by virtue of article [seven-C] 7-C  of  the  multiple
 dwelling  law.  This  paragraph  shall  not apply, however, to or become
 effective with respect to housing accommodations which the  commissioner
 determines or finds that the landlord or any person acting on his or her
 behalf,  with  intent  to cause the tenant to vacate, has engaged in any
 course of conduct  (including,  but  not  limited  to,  interruption  or
 discontinuance  of required services) which interfered with or disturbed
 or was intended to interfere with or disturb the comfort, repose,  peace
 or  quiet  of  the  tenant in his or her use or occupancy of the housing
 accommodations and in connection with such course of conduct, any  other
 general enforcement provision of this act shall also apply.
   (II)  THE  OWNER  OF  ANY HOUSING ACCOMMODATION THAT IS NOT SUBJECT TO
 THIS ACT PURSUANT TO THE PROVISIONS OF SUBPARAGRAPH (I)  OF  THIS  PARA-
 GRAPH  OR  PARAGRAPH  (N) OF SUBDIVISION 2 OF SECTION 2 OF THE EMERGENCY
 HOUSING RENT CONTROL LAW SHALL GIVE WRITTEN  NOTICE  CERTIFIED  BY  SUCH
 OWNER TO THE FIRST TENANT OF THAT HOUSING ACCOMMODATION AFTER SUCH HOUS-
 ING  ACCOMMODATION BECOMES EXEMPT FROM THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT OR THE
 EMERGENCY HOUSING RENT CONTROL LAW. SUCH NOTICE SHALL CONTAIN:  THE LAST
 REGULATED RENT; THE  REASON  THAT  SUCH  HOUSING  ACCOMMODATION  IS  NOT
 SUBJECT  TO THIS ACT OR THE EMERGENCY HOUSING RENT CONTROL LAW; A CALCU-
 LATION OF HOW EITHER THE RENTAL AMOUNT CHARGED WHEN THERE IS NO LEASE OR
 THE RENTAL AMOUNT PROVIDED FOR IN THE LEASE HAS BEEN DERIVED  SO  AS  TO
 REACH  TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS OR MORE PER MONTH; A STATEMENT THAT THE LAST
 LEGAL REGULATED RENT OR THE MAXIMUM RENT MAY BE VERIFIED BY  THE  TENANT
 BY  CONTACTING  THE  STATE DIVISION OF HOUSING AND COMMUNITY RENEWAL, OR
 ANY SUCCESSOR THERETO; AND THE ADDRESS  AND  TELEPHONE  NUMBER  OF  SUCH
 AGENCY, OR ANY SUCCESSOR THERETO. SUCH NOTICE SHALL BE SENT BY CERTIFIED
 MAIL WITHIN THIRTY DAYS AFTER THE TENANCY COMMENCES OR AFTER THE SIGNING
 OF  THE LEASE BY BOTH PARTIES, WHICHEVER OCCURS FIRST OR SHALL BE DELIV-
 ERED TO THE TENANT AT THE SIGNING OF THE LEASE. IN ADDITION,  THE  OWNER
 SHALL  SEND  AND CERTIFY TO THE TENANT A COPY OF THE REGISTRATION STATE-
 MENT FOR SUCH HOUSING ACCOMMODATION FILED WITH  THE  STATE  DIVISION  OF

 S. 5142                             3
 
 HOUSING AND COMMUNITY RENEWAL INDICATING THAT SUCH HOUSING ACCOMMODATION
 BECAME  EXEMPT  FROM THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT OR THE EMERGENCY HOUSING
 RENT CONTROL LAW, WHICH FORM SHALL INCLUDE THE LAST REGULATED RENT,  AND
 SHALL  BE  SENT  TO  THE  TENANT  WITHIN  THIRTY  DAYS AFTER THE TENANCY
 COMMENCES OR THE FILING OF SUCH REGISTRATION, WHICHEVER OCCURS LATER.
   (III) NOTWITHSTANDING SECTION TWELVE OF THIS ACT AND SECTION 213-A  OF
 THE  CIVIL  PRACTICE LAW AND RULES TO THE CONTRARY, THE PERIODS PROVIDED
 FOR THEREIN FOR EXAMINATION OF THE RENTAL HISTORY OF  THE  ACCOMMODATION
 FOR  THE DETERMINATION OF AN OVERCHARGE AND WHETHER THE ACCOMMODATION IS
 SUBJECT TO THIS LAW ARE EXTENDED BY THE PERIOD DURING WHICH THE OWNER IS
 NOT IN COMPLIANCE WITH REQUIREMENTS OF SUBPARAGRAPH (II) OF  THIS  PARA-
 GRAPH.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately provided that:
   (a) the amendment to section 26-504.2 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;
   (b)  the  amendments to section 5 of section 4 of the emergency tenant
 protection act of nineteen seventy-four made by section two 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; and
   (c)  the  provisions of this act shall apply to housing accommodations
 which became vacant on or after the effective date of this act.

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Senate Bill S5142

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - Stricken

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

Senate Bill S5142

Share this bill

Sponsored By

Brian Kavanagh

Archive: Last Bill Status - Stricken

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5142 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments