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

                                   552

                       2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                               (PREFILED)

                             January 9, 2013
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sen.  DeFRANCISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and
  when printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services

AN ACT to amend the social services  law,  in  relation  to  authorizing
  public  welfare  officials  to withhold rent from a landlord when real
  estate taxes for the rental property are unpaid

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

  Section 1. Section 143-b of the social services law, as added by chap-
ter  997 of the laws of 1962, subdivisions 5 and 6 as amended by chapter
701 of the laws of 1965, is amended to read as follows:
  S 143-b. Avoidance of abuses in connection with rent checks.  1. When-
ever a recipient of public assistance and care is eligible for or  enti-
tled to receive aid or assistance in the form of a payment for or toward
the  rental  of any housing accommodations occupied by such recipient or
his family, such payment may be made  directly  by  the  public  welfare
department to the landlord.
  2.  Every public welfare official shall have power to and may withhold
the payment of any such rent in any case where  he  has  knowledge  that
there  exists or there is outstanding any violation of law in respect to
the building containing  the  housing  accommodations  occupied  by  the
person  entitled  to  such  assistance  which is dangerous, hazardous or
detrimental to life or health. A report of each such violation shall  be
made  to  the  appropriate  public welfare department by the appropriate
department or agency having jurisdiction over violations.
  2-A. EVERY PUBLIC WELFARE OFFICIAL SHALL WITHHOLD THE PAYMENT  OF  ANY
SUCH  RENT  IN  ANY  CASE  WHERE  HE HAS KNOWLEDGE THAT THERE EXISTS ANY
LEGALLY UNCONTESTED OUTSTANDING REAL PROPERTY TAXES LEVIED WITH  RESPECT
TO  THE  REAL PROPERTY CONTAINING THE HOUSING ACCOMMODATIONS OCCUPIED BY
THE PERSON ENTITLED TO SUCH ASSISTANCE. INFORMATION RELATING TO ANY SUCH
PROPERTIES' PAID OR UNPAID REAL  PROPERTY  TAXES  SHALL  BE  MADE,  UPON

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

                                                           LBD03544-01-3

S. 552                              2

REQUEST, TO THE APPROPRIATE PUBLIC WELFARE DEPARTMENT BY THE APPROPRIATE
DEPARTMENT OR AGENCY HAVING JURISDICTION OVER SUCH PAYMENTS.
  3.  Every  public welfare official shall have the power to initiate or
to request the recipient to initiate before the appropriate housing rent
commission any proper proceeding for  the  reduction  of  maximum  rents
applicable to any housing accommodation occupied by a person entitled to
assistance  in  the  form  of  a rent payment whenever such official has
knowledge that essential services  which  such  person  is  entitled  to
receive  are  not being maintained by the landlord or have been substan-
tially reduced by the landlord.
  4. The public welfare  department  may  obtain  and  maintain  current
records of violations in buildings where welfare recipients reside which
relate  to  conditions  which are dangerous, hazardous or detrimental to
life or health, AND SUCH INFORMATION RELATING TO THE PAYMENT OR NON-PAY-
MENT OF REAL PROPERTY TAXES LEVIED UPON THE OWNER OF ANY  REAL  PROPERTY
CONTAINING  HOUSING  ACCOMMODATIONS  OCCUPIED  BY  A  PERSON ENTITLED TO
ASSISTANCE UNDER THIS SECTION.
  5. (a) It shall be a valid defense in any action or summary proceeding
against a welfare recipient for non-payment of  rent  to  show  existing
violations  in the building wherein such welfare recipient resides which
relate to conditions which are dangerous, hazardous  or  detrimental  to
life  or  health as the basis for non-payment.  IT SHALL ALSO BE A VALID
DEFENSE IN AN ACTION OR SUMMARY PROCEEDING AGAINST A  WELFARE  RECIPIENT
FOR NON-PAYMENT OF RENT UNDER THIS SECTION TO SHOW THAT THE OWNER OF THE
PROPERTY  OCCUPIED BY A PERSON ENTITLED TO ASSISTANCE HAS LEGALLY UNCON-
TESTED OUTSTANDING REAL PROPERTY TAXES CONNECTED TO SUCH PROPERTY AS THE
BASIS FOR NON-PAYMENT.
  (b) In any such action or proceeding the plaintiff or  landlord  shall
not  be  entitled to an order or judgment awarding him possession of the
premises or providing for removal of the tenant, or to a money  judgment
against  the  tenant, on the basis of non-payment of rent for any period
during which there was outstanding any  violation  of  law  relating  to
dangerous  or  hazardous conditions or conditions detrimental to life or
health, OR ON THE BASIS OF NON-PAYMENT OF RENT UNDER  THIS  SECTION  FOR
ANY  PERIOD DURING WHICH THERE WERE LEGALLY UNCONTESTED OUTSTANDING REAL
PROPERTY TAXES CONNECTED TO THE OCCUPIED PROPERTY.  For the purposes  of
this  paragraph  such  violation  of  law  shall  be deemed to have been
removed and no longer outstanding  upon  the  date  when  the  condition
constituting a violation was actually corrected, AND SUCH LEGALLY UNCON-
TESTED OUTSTANDING REAL PROPERTY TAXES SHALL BE DEEMED PAID UPON RECEIPT
OF PAYMENT, IN WHOLE OR IN PART SUBJECT TO AN AGREED TO PAYMENT PLAN, BY
THE  APPROPRIATE  DEPARTMENT  OR  AGENCY  HAVING  JURISDICTION OVER SUCH
PAYMENTS, such date to be determined  by  the  court  upon  satisfactory
proof submitted by the plaintiff or landlord.
  (c)  The defenses provided herein in relation to an action or proceed-
ing against a welfare recipient for non-payment of rent shall apply only
with respect to violations,  OR  LEGALLY  UNCONTESTED  OUTSTANDING  REAL
PROPERTY  TAXES reported to the appropriate public welfare department by
the  appropriate  department  or   agency   having   jurisdiction   over
violations, OR OUTSTANDING REAL PROPERTY TAXES.
  6. Nothing in this section shall prevent the public welfare department
from  making provision for payment of the rent which was withheld pursu-
ant to this section upon proof satisfactory to  it  that  the  condition
constituting  a  violation  was  actually  corrected, OR THE OUTSTANDING
TAXES DUE HAVE BEEN PAID, OR ARE BEING PAID  SUBJECT  TO  AN  AGREED  TO
PAYMENT PLAN.  Where rents were reduced by order of the appropriate rent

S. 552                              3

commission, the public welfare department may make provision for payment
of the reduced rent in conformity with such order.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.