•  Summary 
  •  
  •  Actions 
  •  
  •  Committee Votes 
  •  
  •  Floor Votes 
  •  
  •  Memo 
  •  
  •  Text 
  •  
  •  LFIN 
  •  
  •  Chamber Video/Transcript 

S04969 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          4969
 
                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                    February 17, 2023
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  Sen. JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction  and
          Community Development
 
        AN  ACT to amend chapter 576 of the laws of 1974, constituting the emer-
          gency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four and the  adminis-
          trative  code  of the city of New York, in relation to placing limita-
          tions on initial regulated rents
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  Subdivision b of section 6 of section 4 of chapter 576 of
     2  the laws of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant  protection  act  of
     3  nineteen seventy-four, is amended to read as follows:
     4    b.  The  initial legal regulated rents for housing accommodations in a
     5  city having a population of less than one million or a town  or  village
     6  as  to  which  a declaration of emergency has been made pursuant to this
     7  act shall be:
     8    (1) For housing accommodations subject to the emergency  housing  rent
     9  control  law which become vacant on or after the local effective date of
    10  this act, the rent agreed to by the landlord and the tenant and reserved
    11  in a lease or provided for in a rental  agreement;  provided  that  such
    12  initial  legal  regulated  rent  shall not exceed the average rent for a
    13  comparable rent regulated housing accommodation, as  determined  by  the
    14  rent guidelines board with jurisdiction over such housing accommodation,
    15  and  may  be  adjusted on application of the owner or tenant pursuant to
    16  subdivision a of section nine of this act; and provided further that  no
    17  increase  of  such  initial regulated rent pursuant to annual guidelines
    18  adopted by the rent guidelines board shall become  effective  until  the
    19  expiration  of  the  first lease or rental agreement taking effect after
    20  the local effective date, but in no  event  before  one  year  from  the
    21  commencement of such rental agreement.

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD04206-01-3

        S. 4969                             2
 
     1    (2)  For  all  other  housing accommodations, the rent reserved in the
     2  last effective lease or other rental agreement; provided that an initial
     3  rent based upon the rent reserved in a lease or other  rental  agreement
     4  which  became  effective  on  or  after  January first, nineteen hundred
     5  seventy-four  may  be  adjusted on application of the tenant pursuant to
     6  subdivision b of section nine of this act or on  application  of  either
     7  the  owner  or  tenant  pursuant  to  subdivision a of such section; and
     8  further provided that if a lease is entered into for such housing accom-
     9  modations after the local effective date, but before the effective  date
    10  of the first guidelines applicable to such accommodations, the lease may
    11  provide  for  an  adjustment  of rent pursuant to such guidelines, to be
    12  effective on the first day of the month next  succeeding  the  effective
    13  date of such guidelines.
    14    § 2. Subdivision b of section 26-512 of the administrative code of the
    15  city of New York is amended to read as follows:
    16    b.  The  initial  regulated rent for housing accommodations subject to
    17  this law on the local effective date of the emergency tenant  protection
    18  act  of nineteen seventy-four or which become subject to this law there-
    19  after, pursuant to such act, shall be:
    20    (1) For housing accommodations which were regulated pursuant  to  this
    21  law  or  the city rent and rehabilitation law prior to July first, nine-
    22  teen hundred seventy-one, and which became vacant on or after such  date
    23  and prior to the local effective date of the emergency tenant protection
    24  act  of  nineteen  seventy-four, the rent reserved in the last effective
    25  lease or other rental agreement; provided that such initial rent may  be
    26  adjusted  on  application  of  the  tenant  pursuant to subdivision b of
    27  section 26-513 of this chapter.
    28    (2) For housing accommodations which were regulated  pursuant  to  the
    29  city  rent  and  rehabilitation  law  on the local effective date of the
    30  emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, and thereafter
    31  become vacant, the rent agreed to by the landlord  and  the  tenant  and
    32  reserved in a lease or provided for in a rental agreement; provided that
    33  such  initial  rent  shall  not exceed the average rent for a comparable
    34  rent regulated housing accommodation, as determined by the commissioner,
    35  and may be adjusted on application of the tenant pursuant to subdivision
    36  b of section 26-513 of this chapter.
    37    (3) For housing accommodations other than  those  described  in  para-
    38  graphs  one  and  two of this subdivision, the rent reserved in the last
    39  effective lease or other rental agreement.
    40    (4) For any plot or parcel of land which had been  regulated  pursuant
    41  to  the  city  rent and rehabilitation law prior to July first, nineteen
    42  hundred seventy-one and which,
    43    (i) became vacant on or after July first, nineteen hundred seventy-one
    44  and prior  to  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  seventy-four,  the  rent
    45  reserved  in a lease or other rental agreement in effect on June thirti-
    46  eth, nineteen hundred seventy-four plus increases authorized by the rent
    47  guidelines board under this law for leases or  other  rental  agreements
    48  commencing  thereafter;  provided that such initial rent may be adjusted
    49  on application of the tenant pursuant to subdivision b of section 26-513
    50  of this chapter or,
    51    (ii) became vacant on or after July first, nineteen  hundred  seventy-
    52  four,  the rent agreed to by the landlord and the tenant and reserved in
    53  a lease or other rental agreement plus increases authorized by the  rent
    54  guidelines  board  under  this law for leases or other rental agreements
    55  commencing thereafter; provided that such initial rent shall not  exceed
    56  the  average rent for a comparable rent regulated housing accommodation,

        S. 4969                             3
 
     1  as determined by the commissioner, and may be adjusted on application of
     2  the tenant pursuant to subdivision b of section 26-513 of this chapter.
     3    (iii)  Where  the commissioner has determined that the rent charged is
     4  in excess of the lawful rents as stated  in  subparagraph  (i)  or  (ii)
     5  hereof,  plus lawful increases thereafter, he or she shall provide for a
     6  cash refund or a credit, to be  applied  against  future  rent,  in  the
     7  amount  of  any rent overcharge collected by an owner and any penalties,
     8  costs, attorneys' fees and interest from the date of the  overcharge  at
     9  the  rate  of  interest  payable  on a judgment pursuant to section five
    10  thousand four of the civil practice law and rules for which the owner is
    11  assessed.
    12    § 3. This act shall take effect immediately, provided,  however,  that
    13  the  amendments to section 26-512 of the administrative code of the city
    14  of New York made by section two of this act shall  expire  on  the  same
    15  date as such chapter expires and shall not affect the expiration of such
    16  chapter as provided under section 26-520 of such chapter.
Go to top