Bill Text: NY S05708 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Tolls the four year statute of limitations look back period on rent overcharges where the owner of a housing accommodation acts in a wrongful or fraudulent manner.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-01-05 - REFERRED TO HOUSING, CONSTRUCTION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT [S05708 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-S05708-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          5708

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     March 16, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen.  COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction  and
          Community Development

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the administrative code of the city of New York, the
          emergency tenant protection act  of  nineteen  seventy-four,  and  the
          civil practice law and rules, in relation to rent overcharges

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

     1    Section 1. The opening paragraph of subdivision a of section 26-516 of
     2  the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by  adding  a
     3  new clause (iii) to read as follows:
     4    (iii)  Notwithstanding the provisions of clause (i) of this paragraph,
     5  for any year in which an owner or a landlord who is required to file  an
     6  annual rent registration statement, has failed to timely file such annu-
     7  al  rent  registration  statement,  the division or a court of competent
     8  jurisdiction shall consider such year  or  years  when  determining  the
     9  current legal regulated rent.
    10    § 2. Section 26-512 of the administrative code of the city of New York
    11  is amended by adding a new subdivision f to read as follows:
    12    f. Upon the offering of a lease to a prospective tenant, an owner or a
    13  landlord shall be required to provide such tenant with the documentation
    14  used by such owner or landlord to support any allowable increases in the
    15  legal regulated rent during the previous four years.
    16    §  3. Paragraph 1 of subdivision a of section 12 of section 4 of chap-
    17  ter 576 of the laws of 1974 constituting the emergency tenant protection
    18  act of nineteen seventy-four is amended by adding a new clause (iii)  to
    19  read as follows:
    20    (iii)  Notwithstanding the provisions of clause (i) of this paragraph,
    21  for any year in which an owner or a landlord who is required to file  an
    22  annual rent registration statement, has failed to timely file such annu-
    23  al  rent  registration  statement,  the division or a court of competent

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD10063-01-1
        S. 5708                             2

     1  jurisdiction shall consider such year  or  years  when  determining  the
     2  current legal regulated rent.
     3    § 4. Section 6 of section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974 consti-
     4  tuting  the  emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four is
     5  amended by adding a new subdivision g to read as follows:
     6    g. Upon the offering of a lease to a prospective tenant, an owner or a
     7  landlord shall be required to provide such tenant with the documentation
     8  used by such owner or landlord to support any allowable increases in the
     9  legal regulated rent during the previous four years.
    10    § 5. Section 213-a of the civil practice law and rules, as amended  by
    11  section  6  of  part  F of chapter 36 of the laws of 2019, is amended to
    12  read as follows:
    13    § 213-a. Residential  rent  overcharge.  No  overcharge  penalties  or
    14  damages  may  be  awarded  for  a  period more than six years before the
    15  action is commenced or complaint is filed, however, an overcharge  claim
    16  may  be  filed at any time, and the calculation and determination of the
    17  legal rent and the amount of the overcharge shall be made in  accordance
    18  with  the  provisions of law governing the determination and calculation
    19  of overcharges. A court of competent  jurisdiction  shall  consider  any
    20  year  in  which an owner or a landlord who is required to file an annual
    21  rent  registration statement,  has  failed  to  timely  file  such annu-
    22  al rent registration statement when determining the current legal  regu-
    23  lated rent.
    24    §  6.  This  act shall take effect immediately, and shall apply to any
    25  action or proceeding pending in any court or any application,  complaint
    26  or  proceeding  before an administrative agency on the effective date of
    27  this act, as well as any  action  or  proceeding  commenced  thereafter;
    28  provided, however, that:
    29    (a)  the amendments to subdivision a of section 26-516 of the adminis-
    30  trative code of the city of New York made by section  one  of  this  act
    31  shall  expire  on the same date as such law expires and shall not affect
    32  the expiration of such section as provided under section 26-520 of  such
    33  code; and
    34    (b) the amendments to section 26-512 of the administrative code of the
    35  city  of  New  York  made by section two of this act shall expire on the
    36  same date as such law expires and shall not  affect  the  expiration  of
    37  such section as provided under section 26-520 of such code.