Bill Text: NY A03346 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Permits the early termination of a commercial lease by a small business or non-profit tenant employing 100 people or less during a state of emergency where the tenant's business has been subject to seating, occupancy or on-premises service limitations pursuant to an executive order issued by the governor during or six months after a declared state of emergency; the revenues of the tenant's business during any three-month period within the declared state of emergency or six months after are less than fifty percent of its revenues for the same period in the previous year or less than fifty percent of its aggregate revenues for the three months preceding the declared state of emergency; or the covered premises is unusable for sixty days or more; permits a tenant to terminate a lease or rental agreement up to six months after the expiration of such state of emergency.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - referred to judiciary [A03346 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A03346-Introduced.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          3346

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 22, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. EPSTEIN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Judiciary

        AN ACT to amend the real property law, in  relation  to  permitting  the
          early  termination  of  a  lease  by certain tenants during a state of
          emergency

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  The  real property law is amended by adding a new section
     2  227-g to read as follows:
     3    § 227-g. Termination of certain commercial leases during  a  state  of
     4  emergency.  1.  (a)  For  the purposes of this section, a "tenant" shall
     5  mean a tenant that is (i) a small business, as defined  by  section  one
     6  hundred thirty-one of the economic development law, or (ii) a non-profit
     7  organization employing less than one hundred people.
     8    (b)  In  any  lease or rental agreement covering premises occupied for
     9  commercial purposes,  where  the  tenant  of  such  property  no  longer
    10  requires  use of the property for reasons including, but not limited to,
    11  the cause of a declared state of emergency causing: (i)  seating,  occu-
    12  pancy or on-premises service limitations at the tenant's business pursu-
    13  ant to an executive order issued by the governor during a declared state
    14  of  emergency  or  the  six  months after the expiration of the state of
    15  emergency; (ii) the revenues of the  tenant's business during any three-
    16  month period within the declared state of emergency or  within  the  six
    17  months  after  the  expiration of the state of emergency to be less than
    18  fifty percent of its revenues for the same period in the  previous  year
    19  or  less  than  fifty  percent  of  its aggregate revenues for the three
    20  months preceding the declared state of emergency; or (iii)  the  covered
    21  premises    to  be unusable for sixty days or more, such tenant shall be
    22  permitted to terminate such lease  or  rental  agreement  and  quit  and
    23  surrender possession of the leasehold premises and the land so leased or
    24  occupied  pursuant  to the provisions of this section and to be released

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD03087-01-1

        A. 3346                             2

     1  from any liability to pay to the lessor or owner, rent or other payments
     2  in lieu of rent for the time subsequent to the date  of  termination  of
     3  such  lease in accordance with subdivision two of this section. A tenant
     4  shall be permitted to terminate such lease or rental agreement up to six
     5  months after the expiration of such state of emergency.
     6    2.  Any  lease  or rental agreement covered by subdivision one of this
     7  section may be terminated by notice in writing delivered to  the  lessor
     8  or  owner  or  to the lessor's or owner's agent by a tenant.  Unless the
     9  lease or rental agreement provides for an earlier termination date, such
    10  termination shall be effective no earlier than  thirty  days  after  the
    11  date  on  which the next rental payment subsequent to the date when such
    12  notice is delivered is due and payable. Such notice shall be accompanied
    13  by documentation of the reasons the tenant of such  property  no  longer
    14  requires use of the property. Such notice shall be deemed delivered five
    15  days after mailing.
    16    3.  Any person who shall knowingly seize, hold, or detain the property
    17  of any tenant who has lawfully terminated a lease  or  rental  agreement
    18  covered by this section, or in any manner interferes with the removal of
    19  such  property  from the premises covered by such lease or rental agree-
    20  ment, for the purpose of subjecting or attempting to subject any of such
    21  property to a purported claim for rent accruing subsequent to  the  date
    22  of  termination of such lease or rental agreement, or attempts so to do,
    23  shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished  by  imprisonment
    24  not to exceed one year or by fine not to exceed one thousand dollars, or
    25  by both such fine and imprisonment.
    26    4.  Upon termination, the premises shall be delivered to the lessor or
    27  owner in accordance with the terms of the lease relating to delivery  of
    28  the premises at the termination of the lease.
    29    5.  Any  agreement  by  a  tenant  of premises occupied for commercial
    30  purposes waiving or modifying his or her rights as  set  forth  in  this
    31  section shall be void as contrary to public policy.
    32    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
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