Bill Text: NY S00281 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Relates to allowing public welfare officials to withhold payment of rent to landlords who owe delinquent tax liabilities to local municipalities, school districts or counties.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO SOCIAL SERVICES [S00281 Detail]
Download: New_York-2019-S00281-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 281 2019-2020 Regular Sessions IN SENATE (Prefiled) January 9, 2019 ___________ Introduced by Sen. ORTT -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Social Services AN ACT to amend the social services law, in relation to allowing public welfare officials to withhold payment of rent to landlords who owe delinquent tax liabilities to local municipalities, school districts or counties The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 143-b of the social services law, as added by chap- 2 ter 997 of the laws of 1962, subdivisions 5 and 6 as amended by chapter 3 701 of the laws of 1965, is amended to read as follows: 4 § 143-b. Avoidance of abuses in connection with rent checks. 1. When- 5 ever a recipient of public assistance and care is eligible for or enti- 6 tled to receive aid or assistance in the form of a payment for or toward 7 the rental of any housing accommodations occupied by such recipient or 8 [his] recipient's family, such payment may be made directly by the 9 public welfare department to the landlord. 10 2. Every public welfare official shall have power to and may withhold 11 the payment of any such rent in any case where [he] such official has 12 knowledge that there exists or there is outstanding any violation of law 13 in respect to the building containing the housing accommodations occu- 14 pied by the person entitled to such assistance which is dangerous, 15 hazardous [or], detrimental to life or health, or where the landlord of 16 such housing accommodations owes delinquent tax liabilities to local 17 municipalities, school districts or counties. A report of each such 18 violation or delinquent tax liability shall be made to the appropriate 19 public welfare department by the appropriate department or agency having 20 jurisdiction over such violations or delinquent tax liabilities. 21 3. Every public welfare official shall have the power to initiate or 22 to request the recipient to initiate before the appropriate housing rent EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02727-01-9S. 281 2 1 commission any proper proceeding for the reduction of maximum rents 2 applicable to any housing accommodation occupied by a person entitled to 3 assistance in the form of a rent payment whenever such official has 4 knowledge that essential services which such person is entitled to 5 receive are not being maintained by the landlord or have been substan- 6 tially reduced by the landlord. 7 4. The public welfare department may obtain and maintain current 8 records of violations in buildings where welfare recipients reside which 9 relate to conditions which are dangerous, hazardous [or], detrimental to 10 life or health, or where the landlord of such housing accommodations 11 owes delinquent tax liabilities to local municipalities, school 12 districts or counties. 13 5. (a) It shall be a valid defense in any action or summary proceeding 14 against a welfare recipient for non-payment of rent to show existing 15 violations in the building wherein such welfare recipient resides which 16 relate to conditions which are dangerous, hazardous [or], detrimental to 17 life or health, or the landlord of such housing accommodations owes 18 delinquent tax liabilities to local municipalities, school districts or 19 counties as the basis for non-payment. 20 (b) In any such action or proceeding the plaintiff or landlord shall 21 not be entitled to an order or judgment awarding him possession of the 22 premises or providing for removal of the tenant, or to a money judgment 23 against the tenant, on the basis of non-payment of rent for any period 24 during which there was outstanding any violation of law relating to 25 dangerous or hazardous conditions or conditions detrimental to life or 26 health or the landlord of such housing accommodations owed delinquent 27 tax liabilities to local municipalities, school districts or counties. 28 For the purposes of this paragraph such violation of law shall be deemed 29 to have been removed and no longer outstanding upon the date when the 30 condition constituting a violation was actually corrected, such date to 31 be determined by the court upon satisfactory proof submitted by the 32 plaintiff or landlord. 33 (c) The defenses provided herein in relation to an action or proceed- 34 ing against a welfare recipient for non-payment of rent shall apply only 35 with respect to violations or delinquent tax liabilities reported to the 36 appropriate public welfare department by the appropriate department or 37 agency having jurisdiction over such violations or delinquent tax 38 liabilities. 39 6. Nothing in this section shall prevent the public welfare department 40 from making provision for payment of the rent which was withheld pursu- 41 ant to this section upon proof satisfactory to it that the condition 42 constituting a violation was actually corrected or delinquent tax 43 liabilities owed to local municipalities, school districts or counties 44 were paid. Where rents were reduced by order of the appropriate rent 45 commission, the public welfare department may make provision for payment 46 of the reduced rent in conformity with such order. 47 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
