S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5521
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 19, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  FITZPATRICK -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Housing
 
 AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city  of  New  York,  the
   emergency housing rent control law and the emergency tenant protection
   act  of  nineteen seventy-four, in relation to the eviction of tenants
   on grounds of landlord's personal use

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph  1  of  subdivision  b of section 26-408 of the
 administrative code of the city of New York, as amended by section 1  of
 part I of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   (1)  The landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of a hous-
 ing accommodation [because of immediate and  compelling  necessity]  for
 his  or  her  own personal use and occupancy as his or her primary resi-
 dence or for the use and occupancy of his or  her  immediate  family  as
 their  primary residence [provided, however, that this subdivision shall
 permit recovery of only one housing accommodation and  shall  not  apply
 where  a member of the household lawfully occupying the housing accommo-
 dation is sixty-two years of age or older, has been a tenant in a  hous-
 ing  accommodation in that building for fifteen years or more, or has an
 impairment which results from anatomical, physiological or psychological
 conditions, other than addiction to alcohol, gambling, or any controlled
 substance, which are demonstrable by medically acceptable  clinical  and
 laboratory diagnostic techniques, and which are expected to be permanent
 and  which  prevent  the tenant from engaging in any substantial gainful
 employment]; provided, further, that a tenant required  to  surrender  a
 housing  accommodation  by virtue of the operation of subdivision g or h
 of this section shall have a cause of action in any court  of  competent
 jurisdiction  for  damages, declaratory, and injunctive relief against a
 landlord or purchaser of the premises who makes a  fraudulent  statement
 regarding  a proposed use of the housing accommodation. In any action or
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD08172-01-1

 A. 5521                             2
 
 proceeding brought pursuant to this paragraph a prevailing tenant  shall
 be  entitled  to  recovery  of actual damages, and reasonable attorneys'
 fees; or
   § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 5 of chapter 274 of the
 laws  of  1946,  constituting the emergency housing rent control law, as
 amended by section 16 of part Q of chapter 39 of the laws  of  2019,  is
 amended to read as follows:
   (a)  the landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of a hous-
 ing accommodation [because of immediate and  compelling  necessity]  for
 his  or  her  own personal use and occupancy as his or her primary resi-
 dence or for the use and occupancy of his or  her  immediate  family  as
 their  primary  residence[;  provided,  however,  this subdivision shall
 permit recovery of only one housing accommodation and  shall  not  apply
 where  a member of the household lawfully occupying the housing accommo-
 dation is sixty-two years of age or older, has been a tenant in a  hous-
 ing  accommodation in that building for fifteen years or more, or has an
 impairment which results from anatomical, physiological or psychological
 conditions, other than addiction to alcohol, gambling, or any controlled
 substance, which are demonstrable by medically acceptable  clinical  and
 laboratory diagnostic techniques, and which are expected to be permanent
 and  which  prevent  the tenant from engaging in any substantial gainful
 employment]; provided, however, that a tenant required  to  surrender  a
 housing  accommodation under this paragraph shall have a cause of action
 in any court of competent jurisdiction  for  damages,  declaratory,  and
 injunctive  relief  against  a landlord or purchaser of the premises who
 makes a fraudulent statement regarding a proposed  use  of  the  housing
 accommodation.  In  any  action  or  proceeding brought pursuant to this
 paragraph a prevailing tenant shall be entitled to  recovery  of  actual
 damages, and reasonable attorneys' fees; or
   §  3.  Subdivision  a of section 10 of section 4 of chapter 576 of the
 laws of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant protection act of  nine-
 teen  seventy-four,  as amended by section 15 of part Q of chapter 39 of
 the laws of 2019, is amended to read as follows:
   a. For cities having a population of less than one million  and  towns
 and  villages, the state division of housing and community renewal shall
 be empowered to implement this  act  by  appropriate  regulations.  Such
 regulations  may encompass such speculative or manipulative practices or
 renting or leasing practices as the state division of housing and commu-
 nity renewal determines constitute or are likely to cause  circumvention
 of  this act. Such regulations shall prohibit practices which are likely
 to prevent any person from asserting any right or remedy granted by this
 act, including but not limited to retaliatory  termination  of  periodic
 tenancies and shall require owners to grant a new one or two year vacan-
 cy or renewal lease at the option of the tenant, except where a mortgage
 or  mortgage  commitment existing as of the local effective date of this
 act provides that the owner shall not grant a one-year lease; and  shall
 prescribe  standards with respect to the terms and conditions of new and
 renewal leases, additional rent and such  related  matters  as  security
 deposits, advance rental payments, the use of escalator clauses in leas-
 es and provision for increase in rentals for garages and other ancillary
 facilities,  so  as to ensure that the level of rent adjustments author-
 ized under this law will not be subverted  and  made  ineffective.  [Any
 provision  of  the  regulations permitting an owner to refuse to renew a
 lease on grounds that the owner seeks to recover possession of a housing
 accommodation for his or her own use and occupancy or for  the  use  and
 occupancy  of  his or her immediate family shall permit recovery of only

 A. 5521                             3

 one housing accommodation, shall require that an owner demonstrate imme-
 diate and compelling need and that the housing accommodation will be the
 proposed occupants' primary residence and shall not apply where a member
 of  the  housing  accommodation  is sixty-two years of age or older, has
 been a tenant in a housing accommodation in that  building  for  fifteen
 years or more, or has an impairment which results from anatomical, phys-
 iological  or psychological conditions, other than addiction to alcohol,
 gambling,  or  any  controlled  substance,  which  are  demonstrable  by
 medically  acceptable clinical and laboratory diagnostic techniques, and
 which are expected to be permanent and which  prevent  the  tenant  from
 engaging  in  any  substantial  gainful  employment; provided] PROVIDED,
 however, that a tenant required to  surrender  a  housing  accommodation
 under  this  subdivision  shall  have  a cause of action in any court of
 competent jurisdiction for damages, declaratory, and  injunctive  relief
 against  a  landlord or purchaser of the premises who makes a fraudulent
 statement regarding a proposed use of the housing accommodation. In  any
 action  or  proceeding brought pursuant to this subdivision a prevailing
 tenant shall be entitled to recovery of actual damages,  and  reasonable
 attorneys' fees.
   §  4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amend-
 ment to section 26-408 of the city rent and rehabilitation law, made  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.