OUR CURRENT PLATFORM OF LEGISLATION 

Real Rent Reform Campaign - Housing Here and Now

LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM FOR 2010

NO MORE DELAYS – STRONGER RENT LAWS NOW!

February 2010

The New York State Legislature must enact a number of reforms to undo years of giveaways to the New York City real estate lobby that have exacerbated the housing crisis in the city and suburban counties. The following represent the absolute minimum of necessary reform.

 

OUR TOP PRIORITIES

Full Repeal of Vacancy Decontrol

S2237-A (Andrea Stewart-Cousins, et al.)/A2005 (Linda Rosenthal et al.)

Repeals vacancy decontrol, which has already cost New York City and the suburban counties of Nassau, Westchester and Rockland Counties an estimated 300,000 apartments that have been removed from rent and eviction protections and are no longer affordable. The bill also re-regulates most of the apartments that were deregulated in the last 15 years.

Adequate protections for former Mitchell-Lama & Section 8 Tenants

S3326-A (Andrea Stewart-Cousins, et al.)/A9230 (Linda Rosenthal et al.)

Provides for rent stabilization coverage for all Mitchell-Lama and project-based Section 8 buildings that leave or have left government supervision, regardless of when constructed or first occupied. The bill further prohibits landlords from seeking rent increases for “unique or peculiar circumstances.” This is the only bill with rent protections for post-1973 buildings that have already left government supervision and did not then become rent regulated.

Renewal of expiring rent and coop protection laws

S6881 (Serrano)/A9967 (Kavanagh) Renews state rent and coop laws that expire June 15, 2011, to June 15, 2014.

Reform Major Capital Improvement Rent Increase System

S745-A (Liz Krueger, et al.)/A1928 (Daniel O’Donnell, et al.)

Makes rent increases for building-wide Major Capital Improvements temporary surcharges, so that once tenants have paid them off, the rent increase disappears. The MCI must be listed as a separate surcharge on the rent bill, rather than being compounded with the base rent.

Reform Individual Apartment Improvement Rent Increase System

S5296 (Daniel Squadron, et al.)/A5316-A (Sheldon Silver, et al.)

Reforms the 1/40th rent increase loophole: (1) lengthens the amortization period from 40 to 84 months, thus bringing it into line with the MCI program. (2) allows direct agency oversight to discourage fraud. (3) strengthens tenant notification.

Reform Owner Use Evictions Loophole

S2642-A (Daniel Squadron, et al.)/A1685-A (Vito Lopez et al.)

Closes one of the worst loopholes in the NYC rent stabilization: landlords can recover “one or more” apartments for use by the landlord or a family member. Owners have emptied entire buildings. This bill limits recovery to one apartment, and requires the landlord to demonstrate “immediate and compelling necessity” as in NYC rent control and suburban rent laws.

Reform Preferential Rent Loophole

S2251 (Liz Krueger, et al.)/A465-A (Hakeem Jeffries, et al.)

Closes another bad loophole that allows a landlord of a rent-stabilized unit to rent to a new tenant at a “preferential” rent lower than the legal rent, then later offer the tenant a renewal lease based on the legal rent, hitting tenants with huge rent increases, sometimes several hundred dollars, often forcing them to vacate. The landlord then collects another 20 percent statutory vacancy bonus and engages in this scam all over again with a new tenant, while steadily moving the legal rent closer to the $2,000 per month threshold for vacancy decontrol. A465 allows the landlord to revert to the higher legal rent upon vacancy, but requires that the lease be renewed based on the lower preferential rent.

Reduce the Statutory Vacancy Bonus

S6084 (José M. Serrano)/A1686 (Vito Lopez et al.)

Reduces statutory vacancy bonus from minimum of 20 percent for a two-year vacancy lease to a minimum of 10 percent, and limits collection to once a year.

Moratorium on Mitchell-Lama Buyouts

S2171 (Thomas Duane, et al.)/A6706 (Jonathan Bing, et al.)

Imposes an 18-month moratorium on Mitchell-Lama buyouts of rentals and coops, and requires DHCR to prepare a report to the Legislature with recommendations for how to preserve Mitchell-Lama housing.

Reform the NYC and Suburban Rent Boards

S5566 (Thomas Duane)/A5282 George Latimer, et al.)

Restructures the four rent guidelines boards in NYC and the three suburban counties (originally designed by the real estate industry itself) to level the playing field and give tenants at least a chance of fair rent adjustments. Among the most important changes is a requirement for City Council approval of appointments by NYC mayor.

Rent relief for New Yorkers Living with HIV/AIDS

S2664 (Thomas Duane)/A2565 (Deborah Glick et al.)

Provides that persons living with clinical/symptomatic HIV or AIDS, and who receive shelter assistance or emergency shelter allowance, shall no longer have to pay more than 30 percent of household monthly unearned and/or earned income towards rent and utilities.

Restore Full Home Rule to New York City

S749 (Liz Krueger, et al.)/A1688 (Vito Lopez et al.)

Repeals the so-called Urstadt Law of 1971, named for Governor Nelson Rockefeller’s housing commissioner Charles J. Urstadt, and by doing so restores full home rule powers over rent and eviction laws to the New York City Council and Mayor.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Housing Here and Now

Michael McKee

(917) 669-2977

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Metropolitan Council on Housing

Mario Mazzoni

(212) 979-6238, ext. 200

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NYS Tenants & Neighbors Coalition

Giti Dadlani

(212) 608-4320, ext. 316

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