Senate Bill S4307

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4307
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 4, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  PARKER -- 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  real  property  actions and proceedings law, in
   relation to requiring that certain public housing  authorities  estab-
   lish an innocent tenant protection act applicable to tenants of public
   and federally assisted housing
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Legislative intent. The legislature finds that it is imper-
 ative that the  forty-nine  public  housing  authorities  in  the  state
 provide that any criminal activities that threaten the health, safety or
 right  to  peaceful enjoyment of the premises, engaged in by a tenant of
 public or federally assisted housing, and members of the tenants' house-
 hold, or any guest or other person under the tenants' control, shall  be
 cause for termination of tenancy. The legislature further finds that law
 abiding tenants are vulnerable to "One-Strike" evictions given the poli-
 cy's  breadth  and  the United States Supreme Court's decision in UNITED
 STATES DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT V.  DAVIS. Anyone who
 leases public or assisted housing is a potential target of  "One-Strike"
 evictions. It is of little consequence that a tenant may be law abiding,
 despise  drug  activity or have made their home a drug-free environment.
 Any link to guest or family members involved in drug activity on or  off
 the public housing premises can trigger eviction. Therefore the legisla-
 ture  finds  the  adoption of an innocent tenant protection act vital to
 law abiding tenants of public and federally assisted housing in New York
 state.
   § 2. The real property actions  and  proceedings  law  is  amended  by
 adding a new section 711-a to read as follows:
   §  711-A. INNOCENT TENANT PROTECTION. 1. EACH PUBLIC HOUSING AUTHORITY
 AND OWNERS OF FEDERALLY ASSISTED  HOUSING  SHALL  UTILIZE  LEASES  WHICH
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08298-01-5
              

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 PROVIDE  THAT ANY CRIMINAL ACTIVITY THAT THREATENS THE HEALTH, SAFETY OR
 RIGHT TO PEACEFUL ENJOYMENT OF THE PREMISES,  ENGAGED  IN  BY  A  PUBLIC
 HOUSING  OR FEDERALLY ASSISTED HOUSING TENANT OR ANY DRUG RELATED CRIMI-
 NAL  ACTIVITY  ON OR OFF SUCH PREMISES ENGAGED IN BY A PUBLIC HOUSING OR
 FEDERALLY ASSISTED HOUSING TENANT, ANY MEMBER OF THE TENANT'S HOUSEHOLD,
 OR ANY GUEST OR OTHER PERSON UNDER THE TENANT'S CONTROL, SHALL BE  CAUSE
 FOR  TERMINATION,  EXCEPT THAT NO TENANCY OF AN INNOCENT LESSEE SHALL BE
 TERMINATED PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
   2. THE BURDEN OF PROOF SHALL BE ON THE GOVERNMENT TO  ESTABLISH  BY  A
 PREPONDERANCE  OF  THE  EVIDENCE  THAT  SUCH  TENANT ENGAGED IN CRIMINAL
 ACTIVITY AS DESCRIBED IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION.
   3. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION THE TERM  "INNOCENT  LESSEE"  MEANS  A
 LESSEE WHO:
   (A)  DID NOT KNOW OF THE CRIMINAL ACTIVITY GIVING RISE TO THE POSSIBLE
 TERMINATION OF TENANCY; OR
   (B) UPON HEARING OF THE CONDUCT GIVING RISE  TO  THE  POSSIBLE  TERMI-
 NATION  OF  THE TENANCY, DID ALL THAT REASONABLY COULD BE EXPECTED UNDER
 THE CIRCUMSTANCES TO TERMINATE THE CRIMINAL ACTIVITY.   FOR PURPOSES  OF
 THIS  SUBDIVISION,  WAYS IN WHICH A PERSON MAY SHOW THAT SUCH PERSON DID
 ALL THAT REASONABLY COULD BE EXPECTED  MAY  INCLUDE  DEMONSTRATING  THAT
 SUCH  PERSON, TO THE EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW: (I) GAVE TIMELY NOTICE TO AN
 APPROPRIATE LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OF INFORMATION THAT LED THE TENANT TO
 KNOW THE CONDUCT GIVING RISE TO A POSSIBLE TERMINATION OF TENANCY  WOULD
 OCCUR  OR  HAD  OCCURRED;  OR (II) IN A TIMELY FASHION REVOKED OR MADE A
 GOOD FAITH ATTEMPT TO REVOKE  PERMISSION  FOR  THOSE  ENGAGING  IN  SUCH
 CONDUCT  TO USE THE PROPERTY, OR TOOK REASONABLE ACTIONS IN CONSULTATION
 WITH A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY TO DISCOURAGE OR PREVENT THE  ILLEGAL  USE
 OF THE PROPERTY.
   4.  A  TENANT  IS NOT REQUIRED BY SUBDIVISION THREE OF THIS SECTION TO
 TAKE STEPS THAT THE  PERSON  REASONABLY  BELIEVES  WOULD  BE  LIKELY  TO
 SUBJECT ANY PERSON, OTHER THAN THE PERSON WHOSE CONDUCT GAVE RISE TO THE
 POSSIBLE TERMINATION OF TENANCY, TO PHYSICAL DANGER.
   § 3. (a) Within six months of the effective date of this act and after
 granting  notice  and an opportunity to comment to affected tenants, the
 executive directors of the public  housing  authorities  and  owners  of
 federally assisted housing shall review the drug-related eviction proce-
 dures  of  all  jurisdictions  having federally subsidized units for the
 purpose of determining whether procedures meet state due process  stand-
 ards.
   (b)  Upon conclusion of the review mandated by subdivision (a) of this
 section, if the executive directors of public housing authorities or the
 owners of federally assisted housing determine that due  process  stand-
 ards  are  met for a jurisdiction, such directors and owners shall issue
 such jurisdiction a waiver of the procedure that mandates an administra-
 tive grievance hearing.
   (c) Within sixty days of the completion  of  the  review  mandated  by
 subdivision  (a)  of this section, the executive directors of the public
 housing authorities and  owners  of  federally  assisted  housing  shall
 report  to the mayors in those cities where such housing authorities and
 owners are under the auspices of that  government  body  or  county,  or
 state body of government, the findings of the review including all waiv-
 ers  granted  in  accordance  with  subdivision (b) of this section. The
 tenancy of a tenant of a public housing authority or federally  assisted
 housing  shall not be terminated without cause and without reason there-
 for given to said tenant in writing  prior  to  such  housing  authority
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 and/or  federally  assisted housing filing an action for summary process
 or seeking an injunction.
   §  4.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
 have become a law.