S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5001
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 14, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON, SALAZAR -- 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 public housing law, in relation to the definition of
   "family member"

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 14 of the  public
 housing  law, as added by chapter 116 of the laws of 1997, is amended to
 read as follows:
   (c) that for the purposes of such  regulations:  (i)  "family  member"
 shall  be  defined  as  a  [husband, wife, son, daughter, stepson, step-
 daughter,  father,  mother,  stepfather,  stepmother,  brother,  sister,
 grandfather,   grandmother,  grandson,  granddaughter,  daughter-in-law,
 son-in-law, mother-in-law or father-in-law]  SPOUSE,  CHILD,  STEPCHILD,
 PARENT,  STEPPARENT,  SIBLING,  SIBLING OF A PARENT, CHILD OF A SIBLING,
 GRANDPARENT, GRANDCHILD, SPOUSE OF A CHILD, OR PARENT OF A SPOUSE of the
 tenant; or any other person residing with  the  tenant  in  the  housing
 accommodation  as a primary residence who can prove emotional and finan-
 cial commitment, and interdependence between such person and the tenant.
 Although no single factor shall be solely determinative, evidence  which
 is  to be considered in determining whether such emotional and financial
 commitment and interdependence existed, may include, without limitation,
 such factors as listed below.  In no event would evidence  of  a  sexual
 relationship between such persons be required or considered.
   (A) longevity of the relationship;
   (B)  sharing of or relying upon each other for payment of household or
 family expenses, or other common necessities of life;
   (C) intermingling of finances as evidenced  by,  among  other  things,
 joint  ownership  of  bank  accounts, personal and real property, credit
 cards, loan obligations, sharing a  household  budget  for  purposes  of
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD00955-01-5
              

 S. 5001                             2
 
 receiving  government  benefits,  or such other factors as may be deter-
 mined by regulation;
   (D)  engaging  in  family-type  activities by jointly attending family
 functions, holidays and celebrations,  social  and  recreational  activ-
 ities, or such other factors as may be determined by regulation;
   (E) formalizing of legal obligations, intentions, and responsibilities
 to  each  other  by  such  means as executing wills naming each other as
 executor or beneficiary, conferring upon each other a power of  attorney
 or  authority to make health care decisions each for the other, entering
 into a personal relationship contract,  making  a  domestic  partnership
 declaration, or serving as a representative payee for purposes of public
 benefits, or such other factors as may be determined by regulation;
   (F)  holding themselves out as family members to other family members,
 friends, members of the community or religious institutions, or  society
 in general, through their words or actions;
   (G)  regularly  performing  family  functions, such as caring for each
 other or each other's extended family  members,  or  relying  upon  each
 other for daily family services;
   (H)  engaging  in  any  other pattern of behavior, agreement, or other
 action which evidences the intention of creating a long-term, emotional-
 ly-committed relationship.
   (ii) a "senior citizen" is defined as a person who is sixty-two  years
 of age or older;
   (iii) a "disabled person" is defined as a person who has an impairment
 which  results  from  anatomical,  physiological or psychological condi-
 tions, other than addiction to  alcohol,  gambling,  or  any  controlled
 substance,  which  are demonstrable by medically acceptable clinical and
 laboratory diagnostic techniques, and which are expected to be permanent
 and which substantially limit one or more of such  person's  major  life
 activities.
   §  2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.