Bill Text: NY S02205 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Provides that penalties may be levied against a person who intentionally withholds a housing accommodation from the market, including for the purpose of future co-operative conversion.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 7-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-01-08 - REFERRED TO HOUSING, CONSTRUCTION AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT [S02205 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S02205-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
                                          2205
                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions
                    IN SENATE
                                    January 23, 2019
                                       ___________
        Introduced by Sens. BAILEY, HOYLMAN, KRUEGER, MONTGOMERY, PARKER, SERRA-
          NO, STAVISKY -- 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 and  the
          emergency  tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, in relation
          to warehousing of housing accommodations and penalties therefor
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
     1    Section 1.  Legislative findings and intent. The legislature finds and
     2  declares  that  each person in the state shall have a right to be housed
     3  and that such right to housing is a basic human right.
     4    The legislature further finds and declares that the practice of "ware-
     5  housing", that is of intentionally  withholding  housing  accommodations
     6  from  the  housing  market,  including the withholding of apartments for
     7  purposes of future co-operative apartment  conversion,  has  contributed
     8  significantly  to  the  shortage of housing in this state, especially in
     9  the city of New York.
    10    The legislature further finds and declares that the practice of  ware-
    11  housing  has  violated  the right to housing of many of the citizens and
    12  residents of this state.
    13    It is thus the intent of the legislature to eliminate the practice  of
    14  warehousing by providing strong penalties to deter such practice.
    15    § 2. Section 26-412 of the administrative code of the city of New York
    16  is amended by adding a new subdivision g to read as follows:
    17    g. It shall be unlawful to harass a tenant to obtain vacancy of his or
    18  her  housing  accommodation  or to have intentionally withheld a housing
    19  accommodation from the market, including withholding such  accommodation
    20  for  the  purpose  of future co-operative apartment conversion.  For the
    21  purposes of this subdivision,  harassment  consists  of  engaging  in  a
    22  course of conduct or repeatedly committing acts which alarm or seriously
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05570-01-9
        S. 2205                             2
     1  annoy a tenant or other person residing in the tenant's housing accommo-
     2  dation and which serve no legitimate purpose.
     3    § 3. Paragraph 2 of subdivision c of section 26-516 of the administra-
     4  tive code of the city of New York, as amended by section 23 of part A of
     5  chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
     6    (2)  to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his or her housing
     7  accommodation or to have intentionally withheld a housing  accommodation
     8  from  the  market,  including  withholding  such  accommodation  for the
     9  purpose of future co-operative apartment  conversion,  the  commissioner
    10  may  impose  by  administrative order after hearing, a civil penalty for
    11  any such violation. Such penalty shall be at a minimum in the amount  of
    12  two thousand but not to exceed three thousand dollars for the first such
    13  offense,  and at minimum in the amount of ten thousand but not to exceed
    14  eleven thousand dollars for each subsequent offense or for  a  violation
    15  consisting  of  conduct directed at the tenants of more than one housing
    16  accommodation.
    17    § 4. Paragraph 2 of subdivision c of section 26-516 of the administra-
    18  tive code of the city of New York, as amended by section 24 of part A of
    19  chapter 20 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
    20    (2) to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his or her  housing
    21  accommodation  or to have intentionally withheld a housing accommodation
    22  from the  market,  including  withholding  such  accommodation  for  the
    23  purpose  of  future  co-operative apartment conversion, the commissioner
    24  may impose by administrative order after hearing, a  civil  penalty  for
    25  any  such  violation.  Such penalty shall be at minimum in the amount of
    26  two thousand but not to exceed three thousand dollars for the first such
    27  offense, and at a minimum in the amount  of  ten  thousand  but  not  to
    28  exceed  eleven  thousand  dollars  for  each subsequent offense or for a
    29  violation consisting of conduct directed at the tenants of more than one
    30  housing accommodation.
    31    § 5. Clause (ii) of paragraph 3 of subdivision  a  of  section  12  of
    32  section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974, constituting the emergency
    33  tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, as amended by section 27
    34  of  part  A  of  chapter  20  of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as
    35  follows:
    36    (ii) to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his housing accom-
    37  modation or to have intentionally withheld a housing accommodation  from
    38  the  market, including withholding such accommodation for the purpose of
    39  future co-operative apartment conversion, the commissioner may impose by
    40  administrative order  after  hearing,  a  civil  penalty  for  any  such
    41  violation.  Such  penalty shall be at minimum in the amount of two thou-
    42  sand but not to  exceed  three  thousand  dollars  for  the  first  such
    43  offense,  and at minimum in the amount of ten thousand but not to exceed
    44  eleven thousand dollars for each subsequent offense or for  a  violation
    45  consisting  of  conduct directed at the tenants of more than one housing
    46  accommodation.
    47    § 6. Clause (ii) of paragraph 3 of subdivision  a  of  section  12  of
    48  section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974, constituting the emergency
    49  tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, as amended by section 28
    50  of  part  A  of  chapter  20  of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as
    51  follows:
    52    (ii) to have harassed a tenant to obtain vacancy of his housing accom-
    53  modation or to have intentionally withheld a housing accommodation  from
    54  the  market, including withholding such accommodation for the purpose of
    55  future co-operative apartment conversion, the commissioner may impose by
    56  administrative order  after  hearing,  a  civil  penalty  for  any  such
        S. 2205                             3
     1  violation.  Such  penalty shall be at minimum in the amount of two thou-
     2  sand but not to  exceed  three  thousand  dollars  for  the  first  such
     3  offense,  and at minimum in the amount of ten thousand but not to exceed
     4  eleven  thousand  dollars for each subsequent offense or for a violation
     5  consisting of conduct directed at the tenants of more than  one  housing
     6  accommodation.
     7    §  7.  This act shall take effect immediately provided that the amend-
     8  ment to section 26-412 of the city rent and rehabilitation law  made  by
     9  section  two  of  this act shall remain in full force and effect only so
    10  long as the public emergency requiring the  regulation  and  control  of
    11  residential  rents and evictions continues, as provided in subdivision 3
    12  of section 1 of the  local  emergency  housing  rent  control  act;  and
    13  provided  further  that  the  amendment  to  section  26-516 of the rent
    14  stabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by sections  three
    15  and  four of this act shall expire on the same date as such law expires,
    16  and provided further that the amendment to paragraph 2 of subdivision  c
    17  of  section  26-516  of  the administrative code of the city of New York
    18  made by section three of this act shall not  affect  the  expiration  of
    19  such paragraph pursuant to subdivision 6 of section 46 of chapter 116 of
    20  the  laws  of 1997, as amended, when upon such date section four of this
    21  act shall take effect; provided further that the amendment to section 12
    22  of the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four made  by
    23  sections  five and six of this act shall expire on the same date as such
    24  act expires and shall not affect the expiration of such act as  provided
    25  in  section  17  of  chapter  576  of  the laws of 1974, as amended; and
    26  provided further that the amendments to clause (ii) of  paragraph  3  of
    27  subdivision  a of section 12 of the emergency tenant protection act made
    28  by section five of this act shall not  affect  the  expiration  of  such
    29  clause  pursuant  to  subdivision  6 of section 46 of chapter 116 of the
    30  laws of 1997, as amended, when upon such date section six  of  this  act
    31  shall take effect.