Bill Text: NY S00149 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to rental discrimination based on income.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-01-04 - REFERRED TO INVESTIGATIONS AND GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS [S00149 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-S00149-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 149 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 4, 2017 ___________ Introduced by Sens. SQUADRON, ADDABBO, DILAN, HAMILTON, HOYLMAN, KENNE- DY, PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Government Operations AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to discrimination based upon the income of persons The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 292 of the executive law is amended by adding a new 2 subdivision 35 to read as follows: 3 35. The term "source of income" shall include: wages from lawful 4 employment; child support; alimony; foster care subsidies; income 5 derived from social security, or any form of federal, state or local 6 public assistance; housing and rental subsidies and assistance, includ- 7 ing section 8 vouchers; savings, investment and trust accounts; and any 8 other forms of lawful income. 9 § 2. Paragraph (a) of subdivision 2 of section 296 of the executive 10 law, as amended by chapter 106 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read 11 as follows: 12 (a) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person, 13 being the owner, lessee, proprietor, manager, superintendent, agent or 14 employee of any place of public accommodation, resort or amusement, 15 because of the race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, 16 military status, sex, source of income, or disability or marital status 17 of any person, directly or indirectly, to refuse, withhold from or deny 18 to such person any of the accommodations, advantages, facilities or 19 privileges thereof, including the extension of credit, or, directly or 20 indirectly, to publish, circulate, issue, display, post or mail any 21 written or printed communication, notice or advertisement, to the effect 22 that any of the accommodations, advantages, facilities and privileges of 23 any such place shall be refused, withheld from or denied to any person EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02373-01-7S. 149 2 1 on account of race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, 2 military status, sex, source of income, or disability or marital status, 3 or that the patronage or custom thereat of any person of or purporting 4 to be of any particular race, creed, color, national origin, sexual 5 orientation, military status, source of income, sex or marital status, 6 or having a disability is unwelcome, objectionable or not acceptable, 7 desired or solicited. 8 § 3. Paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subdivision 2-a of section 296 of 9 the executive law, as amended by chapter 106 of the laws of 2003, are 10 amended to read as follows: 11 (a) To refuse to sell, rent or lease or otherwise to deny to or with- 12 hold from any person or group of persons such housing accommodations 13 because of the race, creed, color, disability, national origin, sexual 14 orientation, military status, age, sex, marital status, [or] familial 15 status, or source of income of such person or persons, or to represent 16 that any housing accommodation or land is not available for inspection, 17 sale, rental or lease when in fact it is so available. 18 (b) To discriminate against any person because of his or her race, 19 creed, color, disability, national origin, sexual orientation, military 20 status, age, sex, marital status, [or] familial status, or source of 21 income in the terms, conditions or privileges of any publicly-assisted 22 housing accommodations or in the furnishing of facilities or services in 23 connection therewith. 24 (c) To cause to be made any written or oral inquiry or record concern- 25 ing the race, creed, color, disability, national origin, sexual orien- 26 tation, membership in the reserve armed forces of the United States or 27 in the organized militia of the state, age, sex, marital status, [or] 28 familial status, or source of income of a person seeking to rent or 29 lease any publicly-assisted housing accommodation; provided, however, 30 that nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit a member of the reserve 31 armed forces of the United States or in the organized militia of the 32 state from voluntarily disclosing such membership. 33 § 4. Subdivision 5 of section 296 of the executive law, as amended by 34 chapter 106 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows: 35 5. (a) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for the owner, 36 lessee, sub-lessee, assignee, or managing agent of, or other person 37 having the right to sell, rent or lease a housing accommodation, 38 constructed or to be constructed, or any agent or employee thereof: 39 (1) To refuse to sell, rent, lease or otherwise to deny to or withhold 40 from any person or group of persons such a housing accommodation because 41 of the race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, military 42 status, sex, age, disability, marital status, [or] familial status, or 43 source of income of such person or persons, or to represent that any 44 housing accommodation or land is not available for inspection, sale, 45 rental or lease when in fact it is so available. 46 (2) To discriminate against any person because of race, creed, color, 47 national origin, sexual orientation, military status, sex, age, disabil- 48 ity, marital status, [or] familial status, or source of income in the 49 terms, conditions or privileges of the sale, rental or lease of any such 50 housing accommodation or in the furnishing of facilities or services in 51 connection therewith. 52 (3) To print or circulate or cause to be printed or circulated any 53 statement, advertisement or publication, or to use any form of applica- 54 tion for the purchase, rental or lease of such housing accommodation or 55 to make any record or inquiry in connection with the prospective 56 purchase, rental or lease of such a housing accommodation whichS. 149 3 1 expresses, directly or indirectly, any limitation, specification or 2 discrimination as to race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orien- 3 tation, military status, sex, age, disability, marital status, [or] 4 familial status, or source of income, or any intent to make any such 5 limitation, specification or discrimination. 6 The provisions of this paragraph [(a)] shall not apply[(1)] : (i) to 7 the rental of a housing accommodation in a building which contains hous- 8 ing accommodations for not more than two families living independently 9 of each other, if the owner resides in one of such housing accommo- 10 dations, [(2)] (ii) to the restriction of the rental of all rooms in a 11 housing accommodation to individuals of the same sex or [(3)] (iii) to 12 the rental of a room or rooms in a housing accommodation, if such rental 13 is by the occupant of the housing accommodation or by the owner of the 14 housing accommodation and the owner resides in such housing accommo- 15 dation or [(4)] (iv) solely with respect to age and familial status to 16 the restriction of the sale, rental or lease of housing accommodations 17 exclusively to persons sixty-two years of age or older and the spouse of 18 any such person, or for housing intended and operated for occupancy by 19 at least one person fifty-five years of age or older per unit. In deter- 20 mining whether housing is intended and operated for occupancy by persons 21 fifty-five years of age or older, Sec. 807(b) (2) (c) (42 U.S.C. 3607 22 (b) (2) (c)) of the federal Fair Housing Act of 1988, as amended, shall 23 apply. 24 (b) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for the owner, 25 lessee, sub-lessee, or managing agent of, or other person having the 26 right of ownership or possession of or the right to sell, rent or lease, 27 land or commercial space: 28 (1) To refuse to sell, rent, lease or otherwise deny to or withhold 29 from any person or group of persons land or commercial space because of 30 the race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, military 31 status, sex, age, disability, marital status, [or] familial status, or 32 source of income of such person or persons, or to represent that any 33 housing accommodation or land is not available for inspection, sale, 34 rental or lease when in fact it is so available; 35 (2) To discriminate against any person because of race, creed, color, 36 national origin, sexual orientation, military status, sex, age, disabil- 37 ity, marital status, [or] familial status, or source of income in the 38 terms, conditions or privileges of the sale, rental or lease of any such 39 land or commercial space; or in the furnishing of facilities or services 40 in connection therewith; 41 (3) To print or circulate or cause to be printed or circulated any 42 statement, advertisement or publication, or to use any form of applica- 43 tion for the purchase, rental or lease of such land or commercial space 44 or to make any record or inquiry in connection with the prospective 45 purchase, rental or lease of such land or commercial space which 46 expresses, directly or indirectly, any limitation, specification or 47 discrimination as to race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orien- 48 tation, military status, sex, age, disability, marital status, [or] 49 familial status, or source of income; or any intent to make any such 50 limitation, specification or discrimination. 51 (4) With respect to age and familial status, the provisions of this 52 paragraph shall not apply to the restriction of the sale, rental or 53 lease of land or commercial space exclusively to persons fifty-five 54 years of age or older and the spouse of any such person, or to the 55 restriction of the sale, rental or lease of land to be used for the 56 construction, or location of housing accommodations exclusively forS. 149 4 1 persons sixty-two years of age or older, or intended and operated for 2 occupancy by at least one person fifty-five years of age or older per 3 unit. In determining whether housing is intended and operated for occu- 4 pancy by persons fifty-five years of age or older, Sec. 807(b) (2) (c) 5 (42 U.S.C. 3607(b) (2) (c)) of the federal Fair Housing Act of 1988, as 6 amended, shall apply. 7 (c) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for any real 8 estate broker, real estate salesperson or employee or agent thereof: 9 (1) To refuse to sell, rent or lease any housing accommodation, land 10 or commercial space to any person or group of persons or to refuse to 11 negotiate for the sale, rental or lease, of any housing accommodation, 12 land or commercial space to any person or group of persons because of 13 the race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, military 14 status, sex, age, disability, marital status, [or] familial status, or 15 source of income of such person or persons, or to represent that any 16 housing accommodation, land or commercial space is not available for 17 inspection, sale, rental or lease when in fact it is so available, or 18 otherwise to deny or withhold any housing accommodation, land or commer- 19 cial space or any facilities of any housing accommodation, land or 20 commercial space from any person or group of persons because of the 21 race, creed, color, national origin, sexual orientation, military 22 status, sex, age, disability, marital status, [or] familial status, or 23 source of income of such person or persons. 24 (2) To print or circulate or cause to be printed or circulated any 25 statement, advertisement or publication, or to use any form of applica- 26 tion for the purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation, 27 land or commercial space or to make any record or inquiry in connection 28 with the prospective purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommo- 29 dation, land or commercial space which expresses, directly or indirect- 30 ly, any limitation, specification, or discrimination as to race, creed, 31 color, national origin, sexual orientation, military status, sex, age, 32 disability, marital status, [or] familial status, or source of income; 33 or any intent to make any such limitation, specification or discrimi- 34 nation. 35 (3) With respect to age and familial status, the provisions of this 36 paragraph shall not apply to the restriction of the sale, rental or 37 lease of any land or commercial space exclusively to persons fifty-five 38 years of age or older and the spouse of any such person, or to the 39 restriction of the sale, rental or lease of any housing accommodation or 40 land to be used for the construction or location of housing accommo- 41 dations for persons sixty-two years of age or older, or intended and 42 operated for occupancy by at least one person fifty-five years of age or 43 older per unit. In determining whether housing is intended and operated 44 for occupancy by persons fifty-five years of age or older, Sec. 807 (b) 45 (2) (c) (42 U.S.C. 3607 (b) (2) (c)) of the federal Fair Housing Act of 46 1988, as amended, shall apply. 47 (d) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for any real 48 estate board, because of the race, creed, color, national origin, sexual 49 orientation, military status, age, sex, disability, marital status, [or] 50 familial status, or source of income of any individual who is otherwise 51 qualified for membership, to exclude or expel such individual from 52 membership, or to discriminate against such individual in the terms, 53 conditions and privileges of membership in such board. 54 (e) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for the owner, 55 proprietor or managing agent of, or other person having the right to 56 provide care and services in, a private proprietary nursing home, conva-S. 149 5 1 lescent home, or home for adults, or an intermediate care facility, as 2 defined in section two of the social services law, heretofore 3 constructed, or to be constructed, or any agent or employee thereof, to 4 refuse to provide services and care in such home or facility to any 5 individual or to discriminate against any individual in the terms, 6 conditions, and privileges of such services and care solely because such 7 individual is a blind person. For purposes of this paragraph, a "blind 8 person" shall mean a person who is registered as a blind person with the 9 commission for the visually handicapped and who meets the definition of 10 a "blind person" pursuant to section three of chapter four hundred 11 fifteen of the laws of nineteen hundred thirteen entitled "An act to 12 establish a state commission for improving the condition of the blind of 13 the state of New York, and making an appropriation therefor". 14 (f) The provisions of this subdivision, as they relate to age, shall 15 not apply to persons under the age of eighteen years. 16 (g) It shall be an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person 17 offering or providing housing accommodations, land or commercial space 18 as described in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this subdivision to make 19 or cause to be made any written or oral inquiry or record concerning 20 membership of any person in the state organized militia in relation to 21 the purchase, rental or lease of such housing accommodation, land, or 22 commercial space, provided, however, that nothing in this subdivision 23 shall prohibit a member of the state organized militia from voluntarily 24 disclosing such membership. 25 § 5. Section 296 of the executive law is amended by adding a new 26 subdivision 22 to read as follows: 27 22. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions two, two-a, and 28 five of this section relating to the prohibition of unlawful discrimina- 29 tory practices based on source of income, such provisions shall not 30 apply to housing accommodations that contain a total of five or fewer 31 housing units located within a municipality that had a local law 32 pertaining to such discriminatory practices, which exempted housing 33 accommodations that contained five or fewer housing units from such 34 prohibition, in existence prior to the effective date of this subdivi- 35 sion, provided, however, that if such local law is repealed after the 36 effective date of this subdivision, the provisions of this section 37 relating to the prohibition of unlawful discriminatory practices based 38 on source of income shall apply to such housing accommodations. 39 (b) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subdivi- 40 sion, the provisions of subdivisions two, two-a, and five of this 41 section relating to the prohibition of unlawful discriminatory practices 42 based on source of income shall apply: (i) to tenants subject to rent 43 control laws who reside in housing accommodations that contain a total 44 of five or fewer units as of the effective date of this subdivision; and 45 (ii) to all housing accommodations, regardless of the number of units 46 contained in each, of any owner or any agent thereof who has the right 47 to sell, rent or lease or approve the sale, rental or lease of at least 48 one housing accommodation within the state of New York that contains six 49 or more housing units, constructed or to be constructed, or an interest 50 therein. 51 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
