Bill Text: NY S07235 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to rental assistance and legal regulated rents in affordable housing projects.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2022-12-15 - SIGNED CHAP.685 [S07235 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-S07235-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7235 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN SENATE June 7, 2021 ___________ Introduced by Sen. KAVANAGH -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the private housing finance law, in relation to rental assistance and legal regulated rents in affordable housing projects The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The private housing finance law is amended by adding a new 2 section 610 to read as follows: 3 § 610. Rental assistance and legal regulated rents. 1. (a) Notwith- 4 standing the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four or 5 the rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine, any regu- 6 lation promulgated pursuant to such act or law, or any other provision 7 of law, where a housing accommodation is subject to a regulatory agree- 8 ment with a state or municipal agency or public benefit corporation, or 9 a political subdivision of the state, and where a federal, state, or 10 local program provides rental assistance for such housing accommodation, 11 such state or municipal agency or public benefit corporation, or poli- 12 tical subdivision of the state, may allow in such regulatory agreement 13 the owner of such housing accommodation to charge and collect a rent for 14 such housing accommodation that (i) does not exceed the maximum payment 15 standard or contract rent that the rental assistance program may provide 16 for such housing accommodation, but (ii) does exceed the legal regulated 17 rent for the housing accommodation. 18 (b) If any such rental assistance ends upon the vacancy of the housing 19 accommodation, the owner of such housing accommodation shall thereafter 20 charge and collect a rent for such housing accommodation that does not 21 exceed the lesser of (i) the previously established legal regulated rent 22 for such housing accommodation, as adjusted by the most recent applica- 23 ble guidelines increases approved by a rent guidelines board established 24 pursuant to the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four 25 and any other increases authorized by law, regardless of when the previ- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD11815-01-1S. 7235 2 1 ously established legal regulated rent was last charged, and (ii) any 2 lower rent that is required by such regulatory agreement. 3 (c) If any such rental assistance ends during a tenancy, including, 4 but not limited to, upon the renewal of a lease, the owner of such hous- 5 ing accommodation shall thereafter charge and collect a rent for such 6 housing accommodation that does not exceed the lesser of (i) the previ- 7 ously established legal regulated rent for such housing accommodation, 8 as adjusted by the most recent applicable guidelines increases approved 9 by a rent guidelines board established pursuant to the emergency tenant 10 protection act of nineteen seventy-four and any other increases author- 11 ized by law, regardless of when the previously established legal regu- 12 lated rent was last charged, (ii) any rent charged to and paid by the 13 tenant immediately prior to the commencement of the rental assistance 14 that was less than the legal regulated rent for such housing accommo- 15 dation, as adjusted by such most recent applicable guidelines increases 16 and any other increases authorized by law, and (iii) any lower rent that 17 is required by such regulatory agreement. 18 2. Any rent charged pursuant to subdivision one of this section in 19 excess of the legal regulated rent for a housing accommodation shall not 20 be registered as the legal regulated rent pursuant to the emergency 21 tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four or the rent stabilization 22 law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine. The owner of such housing accommo- 23 dation shall continue to register the legal regulated rent and any pref- 24 erential rent calculated according to applicable guidelines increases 25 applied to the previously established legal regulated rent or preferen- 26 tial rent, respectively, and separately register the actual rent charged 27 to the tenant pursuant to subdivision one of this section. 28 3. Where the owner of a housing accommodation charges and collects a 29 rent that exceeds the legal regulated rent for such housing accommo- 30 dation pursuant to subdivision one of this section, such owner shall 31 provide every tenant of such housing accommodation with a notice, 32 attached to the initial lease and all renewal leases, advising the 33 tenant in plain language that if such tenant ceases to receive the 34 rental assistance described in subdivision one of this section for any 35 reason, the rent for such housing accommodation shall be the legal regu- 36 lated rent, or any lower rent as required by subdivision one of this 37 section. The owner shall disclose any applicable regulatory agreement 38 and the applicability of this section in any legal proceeding brought 39 against a tenant whose rent is governed by this section. 40 4. An owner of a housing accommodation who fails to adjust a rent upon 41 the termination of any such rental assistance as required by subdivision 42 one of this section shall refund to the tenant the amount of the over- 43 charge and be liable for treble damages. The tenant shall have the right 44 to recover such overcharges and damages from the date of their accrual, 45 notwithstanding any statute of limitations set forth in the emergency 46 tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four or the rent stabilization 47 law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine. The tenant may raise such an over- 48 charge as a claim or defense in any court of appropriate jurisdiction, 49 or in a proceeding at the division of housing and community renewal, 50 pursuant to the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four 51 or the rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine. 52 5. Where a regulatory agreement allows an owner of a housing accommo- 53 dation to charge and collect a rent for the housing accommodation that 54 exceeds the legal regulated rent for such housing accommodation in 55 accordance with subdivision one of this section, the state or municipal 56 agency or public benefit corporation, or political subdivision of theS. 7235 3 1 state, that has executed the regulatory agreement shall audit such 2 owner's records at least once every three years to verify that such 3 owner is complying with the provisions of this section. 4 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
