NY State Senate Bill 2009-S2251

Senate Bill S2251

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Prohibits an owner from adjusting the amount of preferential rent upon the renewal of a lease

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status Via A465 - On Floor Calendar

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Aug 03, 2010	3rd reading cal.1426 substituted for s2251
Aug 03, 2010	substituted by a465a ordered to third reading cal.1426 committee discharged and committed to rules
Jan 06, 2010	referred to housing, construction and community development
Feb 17, 2009	referred to housing, construction and community development

Votes

- Aug 3, 2010 - Rules Committee Vote
  S2251
  
  10
  
  Aye
  
  10
  
  Nay
  
  3
  
  Aye with Reservations
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Rules Committee Vote: Aug 3, 2010
      
      aye (10)
      
      Duane
      
      Hassell-Thompson
      
      Klein
      
      Krueger
      
      Montgomery
      
      Padavan
      
      Parker
      
      Serrano
      
      Smith
      
      Stewart-Cousins
      
      nay (10)
      
      Espada
      
      Farley
      
      Hannon
      
      Johnson
      
      LaValle
      
      Larkin
      
      Saland
      
      Seward
      
      Skelos
      
      Volker
      
      aye wr (3)
      
      Dilan
      
      Stachowski
      
      Valesky

co-Sponsors

View additional co-sponsors

2009-S2251 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A465
Law Section:: Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974
Laws Affected:: Amd §10, Emerg Ten Prot Act of 1974; amd §26-511, NYC Ad Cd
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S448, A1364
2013-2014: S1775, A5473
2015-2016: S2828, A3809
2017-2018: S3712, S6527, A741, A6285
2019-2020: S2845, A1509, A4349
2021-2022: A5770

2009-S2251 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits an owner from adjusting the amount of preferential rent, rent charged and paid by the tenant which is less than the legal regulated rent for the housing accommodation, upon the renewal of a lease; only allows the owner to make such adjustments upon a vacancy which is not the result of the failure of the owner to maintain a habitable residence.

2009-S2251 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S2251

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen
seventy-four and the administrative code of the city of New York, in
relation to the regulation of rents


 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :
To prohibit an owner from adjusting the amount of preferential rent
upon the renewal of a lease.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :
Subdivision a-2 of section 10 of section 4 of chapter 576 provides
that where the amount of rent charged to and paid by the tenant is
less than the legal regulated rent for the housing accommodation, the
amount of rent for such housing accommodation may only be increased to
the previously established regulated rent, as adjusted by all
applicable guidelines increases and other increases authorized by law;
provided, however, that such vacancy shall not be caused by the
failure of the owner or an agent of the owner to maintain the housing
accommodation in compliance with the statutory warranty of
habitability. The law is also deletes provisions that permit an owner
to abandon a preferential rent upon renewal of a lease.

 JUSTIFICATION :

As housing costs increase exponentially across the city of New York,
the displacement of working families and middle class residents from
rent regulated apartments has reached crisis proportions. Without
question, the displacement is aggravated by the ability of landlords
to abandon a preferential rent upon the renewal of a lease.

Prior to a change in law, a preferential rent was permanent for the
duration of a tenancy, and could only be increased upon vacancy.
However, as a result of an unfortunate provision inserted into the law
during the eleventh hour in 2003, landlords are now permitted to
abandon a discounted, preferential rent and impose the statutory rent
upon vacancy or renewal of a lease. Pursuant to this provision,
tenants throughout New York city have faced sudden, unanticipated and
staggering rent increases upon lease renewal, often forcing them out
of rent-regulated apartments.

Equally problematic, there is no "clean hands" requirement that the
landlord conduct itself responsibly in order to abandon a preferential
rent and impose the maximum rent upon a vacancy.  Consequently, if a
tenant leaves an apartment that is uninhabitable due to lack of heat,
hot water, electricity, repairs or sanitary conditions, the landlord
remains eligible to dramatically increase the rent upon vacancy of an
apartment. As a result, current law encourages bad actors to deprive
tenants of a habitable apartment in order to benefit from the ability
to abandon a preferential rent.

In order to stem the displacement crisis in New York City, and
preserve the affordable housing stock that remains available to
working families and moderate-income residents, the rent regulation
laws are in need of comprehensive reform. Substantial modification of
the preferential rent provisions is an important step in that
direction.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
New Bill.

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE & LOCAL GOVERNMENTS :
None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect immediately.

2009-S2251 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  2251

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                            February 17, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens. KRUEGER, DIAZ, HUNTLEY, ONORATO, SERRANO, STAVISKY
  -- 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 emergency tenant protection act of  nineteen  seven-
  ty-four  and  the  administrative  code  of  the  city of New York, in
  relation to the regulation of rents

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  Subdivision a-2 of section 10 of section 4 of chapter 576
of the laws of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant protection act of
nineteen seventy-four, as added by chapter 82 of the laws  of  2003,  is
amended to read as follows:
  [a-2.]  (A-2)  Provides  that  where the amount of rent charged to and
paid by the tenant is less than the legal regulated rent for the housing
accommodation, the amount of rent for such housing  accommodation  which
may be charged [upon renewal or] upon vacancy thereof may, at the option
of  the owner, be based upon such previously established legal regulated
rent, as  adjusted  by  [the  most  recent]  ALL  applicable  guidelines
increases and other increases authorized by law; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT
SUCH VACANCY SHALL NOT BE CAUSED BY THE FAILURE OF THE OWNER OR AN AGENT
OF  THE  OWNER, TO MAINTAIN THE HOUSING ACCOMMODATION IN COMPLIANCE WITH
THE WARRANTY OF HABITABILITY SET FORTH IN SUBDIVISION ONE OF SECTION TWO
HUNDRED THIRTY-FIVE-B OF THE REAL PROPERTY LAW.   Where,  subsequent  to
vacancy,  such  legal  regulated  rent,  as  adjusted by the most recent
applicable guidelines increases and any other  increases  authorized  by
law  is  two  thousand  dollars or more per month, such housing accommo-
dation shall be excluded from the provisions of  this  act  pursuant  to
paragraph thirteen of subdivision a of section five of this act.
  S  2.  Paragraph 14 of subdivision c of section 26-511 of the adminis-
trative code of the city of New York, as added by chapter 82 of the laws
of 2003, is amended to read as follows:

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD07148-01-9

S. 2251                             2

  (14) provides that where the amount of rent charged to and paid by the
tenant is less than the legal regulated rent for  the  housing  accommo-
dation,  the  amount of rent for such housing accommodation which may be
charged [upon renewal or] upon vacancy thereof may, at the option of the
owner,  be  based upon such previously established legal regulated rent,
as adjusted by the most recent applicable guidelines increases  and  any
other  increases authorized by law; PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT SUCH VACANCY
SHALL NOT BE CAUSED BY THE FAILURE OF THE  OWNER  OR  AN  AGENT  OF  THE
OWNER,  TO  MAINTAIN  THE  HOUSING  ACCOMMODATION IN COMPLIANCE WITH THE
WARRANTY OF HABITABILITY SET FORTH IN SUBDIVISION  ONE  OF  SECTION  TWO
HUNDRED  THIRTY-FIVE-B  OF  THE REAL PROPERTY LAW.  Where, subsequent to
vacancy, such legal regulated rent, as adjusted by [the most recent] ALL
applicable guidelines increases and any other  increases  authorized  by
law  is  two  thousand  dollars or more per month, such housing accommo-
dation shall be excluded from the provisions of  this  law  pursuant  to
section 26-504.2 of this chapter.
  S  3.  This act shall take effect immediately; provided, however, that
the amendments to section 10 of the emergency tenant protection  act  of
nineteen  seventy-four  made  by section one of this act shall expire on
the same date as such act expires and shall not affect the expiration of
such act as provided in section 17 of chapter 576 of the laws  of  1974;
and provided, further, that the amendments to section 26-511 of the rent
stabilization  law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by section two of
this act shall expire on the same date as such law expires and shall not
affect the expiration of such law as provided under  section  26-520  of
such law.

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