Bill Text: NY A07864 | 2015-2016 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides for including uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces in the definition of "family member" in relation to regulations pertaining to rights of family members to succeed in certain cases to the rights of certain tenants.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 19-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-01-06 - referred to housing [A07864 Detail]

Download: New_York-2015-A07864-Introduced.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                         7864
                              2015-2016 Regular Sessions
                                 I N  A S S E M B L Y
                                     May 28, 2015
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by  M.  of  A.  RICHARDSON, ROZIC, BARRETT, BUCHWALD, CLARK,
         GOTTFRIED, HIKIND, HOOPER,  MOSLEY,  ROBINSON,  ROSENTHAL,  WRIGHT  --
         Multi-Sponsored  by  -- M. of A.  ARROYO, BRENNAN, COOK, GALEF, GLICK,
         MAYER, PERRY, RIVERA, ROBERTS -- read once and referred to the Commit-
         tee on Housing
       AN ACT to amend the public housing law, in relation to the definition of
         "family member"
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 14 of the public
    2  housing law, as added by chapter 116 of the laws of 1997, is amended  to
    3  read as follows:
    4    (c)  that  for  the  purposes of such regulations: (i) "family member"
    5  shall be defined as a husband, wife, son, daughter, stepson, stepdaught-
    6  er, father, mother,  stepfather,  stepmother,  brother,  sister,  UNCLE,
    7  AUNT,  NEPHEW, NIECE, grandfather, grandmother, grandson, granddaughter,
    8  daughter-in-law,  son-in-law,  mother-in-law  or  father-in-law  of  the
    9  tenant;  or  any  other  person  residing with the tenant in the housing
   10  accommodation as a primary residence who can prove emotional and  finan-
   11  cial commitment, and interdependence between such person and the tenant.
   12  Although  no single factor shall be solely determinative, evidence which
   13  is to be considered in determining whether such emotional and  financial
   14  commitment and interdependence existed, may include, without limitation,
   15  such  factors  as listed below.   In no event would evidence of a sexual
   16  relationship between such persons be required or considered.
   17    (A) longevity of the relationship;
   18    (B) sharing of or relying upon each other for payment of household  or
   19  family expenses, or other common necessities of life;
   20    (C)  intermingling  of  finances  as evidenced by, among other things,
   21  joint ownership of bank accounts, personal  and  real  property,  credit
   22  cards,  loan  obligations,  sharing  a  household budget for purposes of
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD01725-01-5
       A. 7864                             2
    1  receiving government benefits, or such other factors as  may  be  deter-
    2  mined by regulation;
    3    (D)  engaging  in  family-type  activities by jointly attending family
    4  functions, holidays and celebrations,  social  and  recreational  activ-
    5  ities, or such other factors as may be determined by regulation;
    6    (E) formalizing of legal obligations, intentions, and responsibilities
    7  to  each  other  by  such  means as executing wills naming each other as
    8  executor or beneficiary, conferring upon each other a power of  attorney
    9  or  authority to make health care decisions each for the other, entering
   10  into a personal relationship contract,  making  a  domestic  partnership
   11  declaration, or serving as a representative payee for purposes of public
   12  benefits, or such other factors as may be determined by regulation;
   13    (F)  holding themselves out as family members to other family members,
   14  friends, members of the community or religious institutions, or  society
   15  in general, through their words or actions;
   16    (G)  regularly  performing  family  functions, such as caring for each
   17  other or each other's extended family  members,  or  relying  upon  each
   18  other for daily family services;
   19    (H)  engaging  in  any  other pattern of behavior, agreement, or other
   20  action which evidences the intention of creating a long-term, emotional-
   21  ly-committed relationship.
   22    (ii) a "senior citizen" is defined as a person who is sixty-two  years
   23  of age or older;
   24    (iii) a "disabled person" is defined as a person who has an impairment
   25  which  results  from  anatomical,  physiological or psychological condi-
   26  tions, other than addiction to  alcohol,  gambling,  or  any  controlled
   27  substance,  which  are demonstrable by medically acceptable clinical and
   28  laboratory diagnostic techniques, and which are expected to be permanent
   29  and which substantially limit one or more of such  person's  major  life
   30  activities.
   31    S  2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed-
   32  ing the date on which it shall have become a law.