NY State Senate Bill 2017-S6264

Senate Bill S6264

2017-2018 Legislative Session

Relates to establishing an electronic automated system for applications and waiting lists and to develop a written procedure for applicant selection and rejection

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Housing, Construction And Community Development Committee

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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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 03, 2018	referred to housing, construction and community development
May 11, 2017	referred to housing, construction and community development

co-Sponsors

2017-S6264 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A4504
Current Committee:: Senate Housing, Construction And Community Development
Law Section:: Private Housing Finance Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §31, Priv Hous Fin L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: A9769
2019-2020: S2537, S6499, A5175

2017-S6264 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Relates to establishing an electronic automated system for applications and waiting lists and to developing a written procedure for applicant selection and rejection.

2017-S6264 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S6264

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the private housing finance law, in
relation to establishing an electronic automated system for
applications and waiting lists, and to develop a written procedure for
applicant selection and rejection

 PURPOSE :

To ensure that the process of choosing applicants for tenancy in
Mitchell-Lama developments is consistent and made available to the
public.

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

New subdivision 13 would allow for a commissioner or supervising
agency to develop a written procedure with regard to how applications
for admission to a company are processed and numbered, and how tenants
are selected.

New subdivision 14 would allow for the Commissioner of Homes and
Community Renewal or Supervising Agency to develop a procedure where
applicants are notified if their application is rejected. The
notification would be sent to the applicant in written form within
sixty days of the limited-profit housing company's decision to reject
the applicant, and would include reasons why the applicant was

rejected and information regarding the appears process for such
decision.  Also, for purposes of this subdivision, an applicant would
not be deemed rejected if their application is still active on the
limited-profit housing company's waiting list and such waiting list is
still open and accepting applications.

This bill would also allow for the Commissioner or the Supervising
Agency to develop and require the use of a publicly available
electronic automated system for limited-profit housing companies to
store, process, and maintain applications and waiting lists.

 JUSTIFICATION :

The New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development
(HPD) is the nation's largest municipal housing preservation and
development agency. Its mission is to make strategic investments that
will improve and strengthen neighborhoods while preserving the
stability and affordability of existing housing stock. The
Mitchell-Lama program was created in 1955 to provide affordable rental
and cooperative housing to moderate-income families. In New York City,
there are 97 HPD-supervised Mitchell-Lama rental and limited-equity
cooperative developments, with more than 45,300 total units. Each
development is administered by either a Board of Directors
(cooperatives) or a managing agent (rentals and cooperatives).
Applicants apply to the individual developments for a unit of a
specific size, and their names are placed on a manually maintained
waiting list (list) created by HPD staff and subsequently main-tamed
by the respective managing agents. As vacancies occur, applicants
should be selected in the order they appear on the list and sent to
HPD for approval.

An audit completed in July 2015 found the following inconstancies with
the application process: applicants who were next in line for units in
a specific development were not always offered and/or awarded a unit
in the order they were listed. Also, they identified unit occupants
whose names were not submitted to HPD for approval by the respective
managing agents. The audit also found inconsistencies in the methods
used by HPD staff to place applicants on development waiting lists.
This bill would help ensure that any applicant to a Mitchell-Lama
housing unit is aware of their status on the waiting list, if
applicable, and would also require all Mitchell-Lama housing
developments to have a uniform, baseline standard for the handling and
processing of applications. By adding these new requirements, we hope
to rectify these issues and streamline the application process.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

2015-16 A.9769 Reported and referred to Ways and Means

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :

None

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect sixty days after it shall become law.

2017-S6264 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6264
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 11, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COMRIE -- 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 private housing finance law, in relation to estab-
   lishing an electronic automated system for  applications  and  waiting
   lists,  and to develop a written procedure for applicant selection and
   rejection
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 31 of the private housing finance law is amended by
 adding three new subdivisions 13, 14 and 15 to read as follows:
   13.  THE  COMMISSIONER  OR  SUPERVISING AGENCY SHALL DEVELOP A WRITTEN
 PROCEDURE WITH REGARD TO HOW APPLICATIONS FOR ADMISSION TO A COMPANY ARE
 PROCESSED AND NUMBERED, AND HOW TENANTS  ARE  SELECTED.  SUCH  PROCEDURE
 SHALL  BE  IMPLEMENTED AND FOLLOWED BY ALL LIMITED-PROFIT HOUSING COMPA-
 NIES SUBJECT TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ARTICLE; PROVIDED, HOWEVER,  THAT
 ANY  LIMITED-PROFIT  HOUSING  COMPANY MAY ELECT ADDITIONAL PROCEDURES SO
 LONG AS SUCH PROCEDURES ARE NOT INCONSISTENT WITH THE PROCEDURES  DEVEL-
 OPED  BY  THE  COMMISSIONER OR SUPERVISING AGENCY AND ANY OTHER REQUIRE-
 MENTS SET FORTH IN THIS ARTICLE.
   14. THE COMMISSIONER OR SUPERVISING AGENCY SHALL DEVELOP  A  PROCEDURE
 WHEREBY  APPLICANTS  ARE  NOTIFIED IN THE CASE THAT THEIR APPLICATION IS
 REJECTED BY A LIMITED-PROFIT HOUSING COMPANY SUBJECT TO  THE  PROVISIONS
 OF  THIS  ARTICLE,  AND  SUCH  PROCEDURE SHALL ALSO INCLUDE THE APPEAL'S
 PROCESS AVAILABLE TO THE REJECTED APPLICANT. THE NOTIFICATION THAT SHALL
 BE SENT TO THE APPLICANT SHALL BE IN WRITTEN FORM, INCLUDE  REASONS  WHY
 THE  APPLICANT  WAS  REJECTED,  THE APPEAL'S PROCESS, AND BE SENT TO THE
 APPLICANT WITHIN SIXTY DAYS AFTER  THE  LIMITED-PROFIT  HOUSING  COMPANY
 DECIDED TO REJECT SUCH APPLICANT. ANY LIMITED-PROFIT HOUSING COMPANY MAY
 ELECT  ADDITIONAL  PROCEDURES  SO LONG AS SUCH PROCEDURES ARE NOT INCON-
 SISTENT WITH THE PROCEDURES DEVELOPED BY THE COMMISSIONER OR SUPERVISING
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD00417-01-7

 S. 6264                             2
 
 AGENCY AND ANY  OTHER  REQUIREMENTS  SET  FORTH  IN  THIS  ARTICLE.  FOR
 PURPOSES  OF THIS SUBDIVISION, AN APPLICANT SHALL NOT BE DEEMED REJECTED
 IF THEIR APPLICATION IS  STILL  ACTIVE  ON  THE  LIMITED-PROFIT  HOUSING
 COMPANY'S WAITING LIST AND SUCH WAITING LIST IS STILL OPEN AND ACCEPTING
 APPLICATIONS.
   15.  THE  COMMISSIONER  OR  THE  SUPERVISING  AGENCY SHALL DEVELOP AND
 REQUIRE THE USE OF A PUBLICLY AVAILABLE ELECTRONIC AUTOMATED SYSTEM  FOR
 LIMITED-PROFIT  HOUSING COMPANIES TO STORE, PROCESS, AND MAINTAIN APPLI-
 CATIONS AND WAITING LISTS. WAITING LISTS MAINTAINED BY EACH SUCH COMPANY
 SHALL USE A METHOD THAT PROTECTS ANY PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION
 OF APPLICANTS FROM BEING PUBLICLY DISCLOSED OR ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC.
 SUCH ELECTRONIC AUTOMATED SYSTEM SHALL ALSO INCLUDE GENERAL  INFORMATION
 ABOUT EACH COMPANY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO:  THE NAME AND ADDRESS
 OF  THE  COMPANY; THE MANAGEMENT OFFICE AND ADDRESS; THE NUMBER AND SIZE
 OF ALL UNITS IN EACH BUILDING; AND INFORMATION ON  THE  STATUS  OF  EACH
 WAITING  LIST,  INCLUDING  WHETHER THE LIMITED-PROFIT HOUSING COMPANY IS
 CURRENTLY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS AND HOW LONG  APPLICANTS  MAY  HAVE  TO
 WAIT.
   §  2.  This  act  shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall
 have become a law.

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Senate Bill S6264

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Sponsored By

Leroy Comrie