S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
5682
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
February 19, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GLICK, TAYLOR, ROSENTHAL -- read once and
referred to the Committee on Housing
AN ACT to amend the multiple dwelling law, in relation to the status of
an interim multiple dwelling unit as a protected occupant's primary
residence
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature hereby finds and
declares that the findings in section 280 of the multiple dwelling law
are reaffirmed; that the decision from the Appellate Division, First
Department, in ONE DOUBLE NINE DASHING LLC V NEW YORK CITY LOFT BOARD ET
AL. (2022) misinterpreted the relationship of primary residence to
continued occupancy of potential protected occupants under article 7-C
of the multiple dwelling law; that the unique illegal living arrange-
ments of potential protected occupants prior to loft law coverage, with-
out rent and eviction protections and without the applicability of mini-
mum housing maintenance standards, necessitates a regulatory approach
which is not always the same as for other rent-regulated tenants; that
the loft board properly concluded that the primary residence requirement
in the statute is prospective from an application for protected occupan-
cy or from registration of the unit with the loft board; that the loft
board properly considered all relevant evidence and rejected a position
that statements on tax returns alone are determinative in making deter-
minations regarding primary residence; that prior to DASHING (2022)
neither the courts nor the loft board has looked at statements made on
tax returns as controlling when evaluating issues of primary residence
for loft tenants; that most loft tenants use for business purposes
portions of their lofts, which the loft law envisions as being legalized
and covered as joint live/work spaces, so long as the residential use is
the primary use of the unit; and that it is necessary for the legisla-
ture to correct the misinterpretation in DASHING (2022) and to clarify,
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD08702-01-5
A. 5682 2
and to codify in the law, what has been loft board policy and precedent
based on the current law, loft board rules, and the loft board's deleg-
ated expertise for evaluating primary residence of potential protected
occupants in possible interim multiple dwelling units.
§ 2. Paragraph (i) of subdivision 2 of section 286 of the multiple
dwelling law, as amended by chapter 4 of the laws of 2013, is amended
and a new subdivision 14 is added to read as follows:
(i) Prior to compliance with safety and fire protection standards of
article seven-B of this chapter, residential occupants qualified for
protection pursuant to this article shall be entitled to continued occu-
pancy, provided that, SUBSEQUENT TO THE APPLICATION FOR PROTECTED OCCU-
PANCY WITH THE LOFT BOARD OR A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION OR REGIS-
TRATION WITH THE LOFT BOARD OF THE OCCUPANT'S UNIT PURSUANT TO THIS
ARTICLE, the unit is their primary residence, and shall pay the same
rent, including escalations, specified in their lease or rental agree-
ment to the extent to which such lease or rental agreement remains in
effect or, in the absence of a lease or rental agreement, the same rent
most recently paid and accepted by the owner; if there is no lease or
other rental agreement in effect, rent adjustments prior to article
seven-B compliance shall be in conformity with guidelines to be set by
the loft board for such residential occupants within six months from the
effective date of this article.
14. IN DETERMINING WHETHER A UNIT QUALIFIES FOR COVERAGE PURSUANT TO
THIS ARTICLE, WHETHER AN OCCUPANT QUALIFIES FOR PROTECTION UNDER THIS
ARTICLE, OR WHETHER A REGISTERED INTERIM MULTIPLE DWELLING UNIT IS A
PROTECTED OCCUPANT'S PRIMARY RESIDENCE FOR ALL PURPOSES UNDER THIS ARTI-
CLE, NO SINGLE FACTOR SHALL BE SOLELY DETERMINATIVE, INCLUDING, WITHOUT
LIMITATION, STATEMENTS MADE OR ACTIONS TAKEN IN RELATION TO FEDERAL,
STATE OR CITY TAX RETURNS. EVIDENCE WHICH MAY BE CONSIDERED SHALL
INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, SPECIFICATION BY AN OCCUPANT OF AN
ADDRESS OTHER THAN SUCH UNIT AS A PLACE OF RESIDENCE ON ANY TAX RETURN,
MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATION, DRIVER'S LICENSE OR OTHER DOCUMENT FILED
WITH A GOVERNMENT AGENCY. NO WAIVER OF RIGHTS OTHERWISE PROTECTED BY
THIS SUBDIVISION, MADE PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS SUBDIVISION,
SHALL BE ACCORDED ANY FORCE OR EFFECT.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately, and shall apply to all
pending actions or proceedings, including appeals.