Bill Text: NY S03349 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to suspending rent payments for certain tenants due to the state of emergency declared by Executive Order No. 202, where they have lost earned income or were forced to close their place of business; requires landlords to accept 20 percent or one-third of contractual rent each month; requires the superintendent of the department of financial services to establish and implement an interim commercial rent relief program to support covered tenants and landlords impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 13)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO COMMERCE, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND SMALL BUSINESS [S03349 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S03349-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 3349 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 29, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN, BIAGGI, JACKSON, KENNEDY, MAY, MYRIE, RIVERA, SALAZAR, SEPULVEDA, SERRANO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Commerce, Econom- ic Development and Small Business AN ACT to suspend rent payments for certain tenants in response to the outbreak of coronavirus The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. For the purposes of this act: 2 (a) "actual income" means for a not-for-profit corporation employing 3 twenty-five or less full-time employees or full-time equivalent employ- 4 ees or for a small business incorporated and resident in this state, 5 independently owned and operated, not dominant in its field, and employs 6 twenty-five or less full-time employees or full-time equivalent employ- 7 ees, all revenue, including emergency federal, state or local assist- 8 ance, or any other form of income that may be used to pay rent, but 9 excluding restricted grants; 10 (b) "landlord" means the person or entity to whom a covered tenant 11 owes rent; 12 (c) "rent" means the amount charged in consideration for the use and 13 occupancy of real property pursuant to a written or oral rental agree- 14 ment or statute; 15 (d) "state of emergency" means the state of emergency declared by 16 executive order 202 that began on March 7, 2020 and any further amend- 17 ments or modifications, and as may be further extended pursuant to 18 section 28 of the executive law; 19 (e) "covered tenant" includes a tenant that is a not-for-profit corpo- 20 ration employing twenty-five or less full-time employees or full-time 21 equivalent employees, or a tenant that is a small business incorporated 22 and resident in this state, independently owned and operated, not domi- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02356-02-1S. 3349 2 1 nant in its field, and employs twenty-five or less full-time employees 2 or full-time equivalent employees; and 3 (f) "covered period" means March 7, 2020 until the date on which none 4 of the provisions that closed or otherwise restricted public or private 5 businesses or places of public accommodation, or required postponement 6 or cancellation of all non-essential gatherings of individuals of any 7 size, for any reason in Executive Orders 202.3, 202.4, 202.5, 202.6, 8 202.7, 202.8, 202.10, 202.11, 202.13 or 202.14, as extended by Executive 9 Orders 202.28 and 202.31 and as further extended by any future Executive 10 Order, issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic continue to apply in 11 the county in which the covered tenant is located. 12 § 2. (a) (i) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, rule or regu- 13 lation to the contrary, any covered tenant in the state that has been 14 forced to close their place of business, or whose business activities 15 have been substantially curtailed resulting in a loss of income as a 16 result of government ordered restrictions in response to the outbreak of 17 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), shall be responsible for rent 18 payments up to twenty percent of the covered tenant's actual income for 19 the thirty days prior to the date such rent was due or one-third of 20 their contractual rent, whichever is less, per month for the duration of 21 the covered period through one hundred eighty days following the final 22 day of the covered period. A landlord of a covered tenant shall waive 23 twenty percent of the contractual rent per month for the duration of one 24 hundred eighty days following the final day of the covered period. 25 (ii) Where a covered tenant is authorized to pay an amount that is 26 less than their contractual or statutory rent pursuant to this act, the 27 covered tenant shall provide the landlord and the department of economic 28 development with a sworn affidavit affirming the covered tenant's actual 29 income for the thirty days prior to the date such rent was due for each 30 month for which the tenant is seeking a reduced payment of rent due to 31 loss of income as a result of government ordered restrictions in 32 response to the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Upon 33 the verification of such statement by the commissioner of the department 34 of economic development or his or her agent, such payment shall absolve 35 the covered tenant of any further obligation to pay rent and any differ- 36 ence between the rent that would have been contractually or statutorily 37 owed and the amount paid pursuant to this paragraph shall be waived, 38 except where a covered tenant later receives additional income, such 39 rent obligations shall be recalculated. 40 (iii) In a summary proceeding for the non-payment of rent under arti- 41 cle 7 of the real property actions and proceedings law, a covered tenant 42 may raise a payment made pursuant to this act as a defense to non-pay- 43 ment. If the amount of the covered tenant's actual income is in dispute, 44 the court shall review documentation of the covered tenant's income in 45 camera, unless otherwise deemed necessary by the court. Notwithstanding 46 any other provision of law to the contrary customary documentation of 47 income shall constitute prima facie evidence of the covered tenant's 48 actual income and shall be presumptively admissible in such summary 49 proceeding. 50 (b) Any covered tenant whose lease expires during the covered period 51 shall have the option of extending such lease under the terms existing 52 prior to the expiration of the lease for a period of up to one hundred 53 eighty days after the expiration of the state of emergency. 54 (c) Late fees, interest or other penalties shall not be collectable 55 for rent accrued during the existence of the state of emergency.S. 3349 3 1 § 3. (a) The commissioner of the department of economic development is 2 hereby authorized and directed to establish and implement an interim 3 commercial rent relief program to support covered tenants and landlords 4 impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Such program shall be provided at 5 least $500,000,000, including but not limited to monies that have been 6 allocated to the state of New York by the federal government. 7 (b) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, a landlord that has 8 lost rental income pursuant to this act and has not been fully compen- 9 sated by emergency federal, state or local assistance, may apply to the 10 department of economic development for relief. The commissioner of the 11 department of economic development may, upon satisfaction of the veraci- 12 ty of the landlord's application and to the extent possible, authorize 13 the distribution of funds, including but not limited to any unrestricted 14 federal emergency assistance monies provided to the state that have not 15 otherwise been obligated, to any such landlord in the amount of the 16 balance of rental income lost after the twenty percent of the contractu- 17 al rent waived by the landlord and any amount paid by a covered tenant 18 pursuant to section two of this act. 19 (c) The commissioner of the department of economic development shall 20 promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the provisions of this 21 act. The regulations promulgated pursuant to this subdivision shall 22 include provisions designed to ensure full access to the services and 23 financial assistance required under this section by individuals for whom 24 English is not the primary language. 25 § 4. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, no court shall 26 accept for filing a petition to commence a new summary proceeding to 27 recover possession of real property under article 7 of the real property 28 actions and proceedings law for non-payment of rent due to loss of 29 income as a result of government ordered restrictions in response to the 30 outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) for at least thirty days 31 following the expiration of the state of emergency; provided any statute 32 of limitations applicable to such summary proceedings shall be tolled 33 for thirty days; provided further, however, that the tenant shall 34 provide a sworn affidavit affirming the covered tenant's loss of income 35 as a result of government ordered restrictions in response to the 36 outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). In no event shall late 37 or reduced rent payments during the state of emergency constitute the 38 basis for a summary holdover proceeding for the chronic nonpayment of 39 rent. 40 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately and shall be deemed to 41 have been in full force and effect on and after March 7, 2020.
