May 2, 2011

Standing up for the rights of tenants to organize, the New York State Senate passed legislation to eliminate the financial burden to tenants who want to conduct meetings in public housing, announced Senator Velmanette Montgomery, a sponsor of the bill. 

The legislation (S.3114)  bans the imposition of a fee currently placed on tenants wishing to hold a group meeting. Under the bill, tenants would have access to a location owned by the authority which has been set aside as an area of common use for all tenants, including any community or social room.

The Senator’s legislation states that meetings scheduled by tenants must be peacefully conducted, during reasonable hours and not obstruct any access to other residents.  The legislation also stipulates that the meeting space has to be reserved three days in advance to avoid the current fee.

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