BILL NUMBER:S3565

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the administrative code of the city of
New York, the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four
and the emergency housing rent control law, in relation to prohibiting
surcharges for the installation or use of air conditioner units in
housing accommodations subject to rent regulation

PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: This bill would prohibit a landlord
from imposing a surcharge on a tenant for the use of a
tenant-installed air conditioning unit if the tenant pays for the
electric utility service.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 amends the administrative code of the city of New York by
adding and new section 26-416 that would prohibit a landlord of any
housing accommodation subject to rent regulation laws from imposing a
surcharge for the use of a tenant-installed air conditioning unit,
provided that the tenant pays for the electrical utility service.

Section 2 amends section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974,
constituting the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy
four, by adding a new subdivision that would prohibit a landlord of
any housing accommodation subject to rent regulation laws from
imposing a surcharge for the use of a tenant-installed air
              

conditioning unit, provided that the tenant pays for the electrical
utility service.

Section 3 amends section 26-512 of the administrative code of the city
of New York by adding a new subdivision that would prohibit a landlord
of any housing accommodation subject to sent regulation laws from
imposing a surcharge for the use of a tenant-installed air
conditioning unit, provided that the tenant pays for the electrical
utility service.

Section 4 amends subdivision 4 of section 4 of chapter 274 of the laws
of 1946, constituting the emergency housing rent control law, by
adding a new paragraph f that would prohibit a landlord of any housing
accommodation subject to rent regulation laws from imposing a
surcharge for the use of a tenant-installed air conditioning unit,
provided that the tenant pays for the electrical utility service.

Section 5 sets the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION: Nearly half of all New Yorkers live below or close to
the poverty line. Accordingly, it is critical that New York City has
protections in place to safeguard its residents' basic necessities,
one of the most important of which is housing. With an average rent of
over $1,000 in the City, programs that reduce the rent burden are
essential. One important example is New York City's system. of rent
stabilization, which provides a variety of tenant protections to over
2 million people.

Despite the high need for these tenant protections, many landlords are
increasing the cost of housing by imposing non-rent fees on rent
stabilized tenants. One major example, and the focus of-this bill, is


a surcharge for air conditioner units that tenants install in their
apartments. While this type of surcharge is sometimes allowed in
accordance with the operational bulletin 84-4 and Operational Bulletin
2005-01 issued by the NYS Division of Homes and Community Renewal,
many landlords do not follow the regulations set forth in the
Operational Bulletin for when the surcharges can be applied.  Also,
the purported rationale was to take into account the increased wear on
plumbing and electrical systems and the increased utility costs paid
by landlords. But these costs are already taken into account when
calculating rent increases each year.

Most of the time, landlords add these surcharges without meeting any
of the conditions set forth in Operational Bulletin, 2005-01. A recent
survey of rent stabilized tenants indicates that 68% were charged a
surcharge for their air conditioner or washing machine in the last
year.{1} These surcharges can add hundreds of dollars to a tenant's
rent, making rent controlled and rent stabilized apartments
unaffordable for low-income New Yorkers. Because these costs are
already accounted for in the rent itself and to end the landlords'
abuse of this system of appliance surcharges, this bill is necessary
to protect low-income tenants in New York City and ensure that they
are not being charged more than they legally owe for rent, This extra
cost raises rents and makes rent controlled and rent stabilized
apartments unaffordable for many New Yorkers.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: This is a New Bill

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None to the State.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect immediately; provided that:

(a) section 26-416 of the city rent and rehabilitation law as added by
section one of this act shall remain in full force and effect only as
long as the public emergency requiring the regulation and control of
residential rents and evictions continues, as provided in subdivision
3 of section 1 'of the local emergency housing rent control act; (b)
the amendments to section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974
constituting the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen
seventy-four made by section two 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
(c) the amendments to section 26-512 of chapter 4 of title 26 of the
administrative code of the city of New York, made by section three 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; and (d) the amendments to section 5 of the emergency
housing rent control law made by section four of this act shall expire
on the same date as such law expires and shall not affect the
expiration of such law as provided in subdivision 2 of section 1 of
chapter 274 of the laws of 1946

{1} "The Burden of Fees: How Affordable Housing is Made Unaffordable."
Community Action for Safe Apartments and the Community Development
Project, September 2013. http//www.cdp-ny.org/reort/The Burden of Fees
FINAL.pdf