Senate Bill S7739

                                 
BILL NUMBER: S7739

SPONSOR: STAVISKY
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public health law, in relation to permitting cooper-
ative housing corporations to directly obtain a shareholder's death
certificate

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

This bill would permit cooperative housing corporations to directly
obtain a shareholder's death certificate.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one amends paragraph (g) of subdivision 1 of section 4174 of the
public health law as amended by chapter 396 of the laws of 1989 and a
new paragraph (h) is added to read as follows:

(g) upon request of a board of elections, issues certification of death,
or
              

(h) upon request of a cooperative housing corporation, issue a certif-
ication of death of a shareholder of such cooperative housing corpo-
ration, provided that such cooperative housing corporation submits with
such request appropriate documentation of their creditor status.

Section two establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill provides a legislative solution to an important and long-
standing issue that affects cooperative housing corporations throughout
the state of New York. The barrier to obtaining a death certificate when
a shareholder passes away creates significant delays in the collection
of maintenance charges and the resolution of estates particularly where
family members fail to timely probate the estate.

The ability to obtain a death certificate in a swift manner allows co -
ops to initiate creditors petitions or work with the Public Administra-
tors office without any undue delay. This would accelerate the probate
process, prevent properties from languishing unoccupied and deteriorat-
ing and ensure any maintenance arrears are addressed more promptly.

It would also benefit the beneficiaries of the estates by preserving the
value of the assets and avoiding unnecessary loss of equity that may
arise over years of neglect.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New Bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

Minimal

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.