BILL NUMBER:  S4521

 TITLE OF BILL :

An act to amend the public housing law, in relation to the New York
city housing authority and mold remediation

 PURPOSE :

To require the New York City Housing Authority ("NYCHA") to remediate
any instances of mold reported by any tenant to NYCHA within fifteen
(15) days of NYCHA's notice of the condition. In addition, within
sixty days (60) of the initial remediation, NYCHA shall revisit the
apartment to ensure that the remediation was successful.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

§ 1. Section 402 of the public housing law is amended by adding
subdivision 10 providing that:

1. NYCHA shall remediate any instances of mold reported by any tenant
to NYCHA within fifteen (15) days of NYCHA's notice of the condition.

2. Within sixty days (60) of the initial remediation, NYCHA shall
revisit the dwelling unit to ensure that the remediation was
successful.
              

2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become a law.

 EXISTING LAW :

Existing state law establishes a toll-free telephone hotline to
provide information regarding health care providers and treatment
centers with expertise in illnesses associated with military duty.
There is also a federal veterans' crisis line.

 JUSTIFICATION :

The North Carolina Division of Public Health describes mold as a type
of fungus that is an often "fuzzy-looking growth that appears on the
surface of organic materials in damp conditions, both outdoors and
indoors. Molds may be gray, black, green, yellow, orange or various
other colors, and may have a velvety or wooly texture."

The North Carolina Division of Public Health further states that
produce tiny spores in order to reproduce. Mold spores continually
waft through the air, both indoors and out-of-doors. When mold spores
land on a damp spot, they may begin growing and digesting whatever
they are growing on in order to survive. Indoors, molds can grow on
wood, paper, fabrics, carpet, foods and other organic materials.
Molds are a natural part of the environment, but human health problems
may result when people are exposed to large amounts of mold,
particularly indoors."

According to the Centers of Disease Control, many people are sensitive
to molds. For these people, exposure to molds can cause symptoms such
as nasal stuffiness, eye irritation, wheezing, or skin irritation.
People with serious allergies to molds may have more severe reactions.
Severe reactions may include fever, shortness of breath, skin rash and
itching, running nose, eye irritation, cough, throat irritation,
headache, congestion and aggravation of asthma. People with chronic
lung illnesses, such as obstructive lung disease, may also develop
mold infections in their lungs. Mold is also especially dangerous for
individuals with compromised immune systems such as HIV/AIDS patients,
organ transplant patients or chemotherapy patients.
NYCHA has a terrible history of remediating mold in its apartments.
Recently, after a law suit was filed, NYCHA entered into a settlement
agreeing to federal oversight of its troubled effort to erase
tenacious mold from hundreds of aging apartments. The settlement
requires federal oversight of NYCHA's mold remediation activities for
three years. This bill will ensure that NYCHA will continue to
properly remediate mold conditions in its apartments even after the
three year settlement has expired.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

01/06/16 Referred to Housing, Construction and Community Development
02/04/15 Referred to Housing, Construction and Community Development

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None

 LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall have
become law.