BILL NUMBER: S6340

SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the general obligations law, in relation to making rent
stabilized dwelling units eligible for certain protections

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To update New York's General Obligation Laws to include the protections
afforded for tenants with security deposits under the Housing Stability
and Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA) of 2019 for Rent Stabilized tenants.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill amends Section 7-108 of the General Obligations
Law to remove exclusion of rent stabilized dwelling units

Section 2 of the bill states this act shall take effect immediately

 
              

JUSTIFICATION:

The Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act (HSTPA) of 2019 estab-
lished new protections for tenants with Security Deposits, including
requirements that landlords return security deposits within fourteen
days from the tenant's vacatur, provide an itemized list of any damages
beyond wear and tear for which they are deducting any part of the depos-
it return, and conduct an inspection within two weeks of tenants' vaca-
tur to give tenants time to correct any damages.

However, these protections do not extend to the hundreds of thousands of
units that are rent stabilized, since the HSTPA included these
protections in a Section of the General Obligations Law (7-108) that
explicitly excludes rent stabilized dwelling units. These protections
have helped level the playing field for tenants and have eliminated long
standing abuses in the security deposit system; they should be extended
to all tenants in the State of New York.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
Immediately after becoming law.