Senate Majority Leader Announces Support for All Nine Rent Laws

June 13th, 2019

This week Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins pledged via press releaseenough conference support for the passage of a nine bill package dealing with rent regulations. “Following a long discussion within the Senate Majority Conference, it is clear that we have support for all nine priority housing bills. We have 11 days remaining before current rent regulations expire, and we will use that time to advance this legislation. We have committed to providing New Yorkers with the strongest housing protections in state history.” The nine bill package was put forward by the Assembly Speaker earlier in the year. The current rent regulations are due to expire on June 15^th. The nine bill package includes the following bills:

Statewide Tenant Protection Act (S.5040/A.7046) – This bill will allow any municipality to opt in to the state’s system of regulating rents and evictions in buildings with six or more units constructed prior to 1974, after conducting a survey to determine if the vacancy rate is five percent or less. Currently these laws only apply in New York City as well as Rockland, Westchester, and Nassau Counties.

Prohibit eviction without good cause (S.2892a/A.5030) – This bill would prohibit a landlord from evicting a tenant without a good reason. Valid reasons, as outlined in the bill, include failure to pay rent —unless the failure was due to an “unconscionable” rent increase. “Unconscionable” is defined as increases more than 1.5 times the local inflation rate. Other valid reasons would include “the violation of a substantial obligation of the tenancy, committing or permitting a nuisance, permitting the premises to be used for an illegal purpose, or if, under certain conditions, the to be premises are to be personally occupied by the landlord or close relatives of the landlord as their primary residence.”

End vacancy decontrol (S.2591/A.1198) – This bill would repeal a provision of law that allows the permanent deregulation of a rent stabilized apartment if the rent exceeds $2,700 per month and becomes vacant.

Eliminate the “vacancy bonus” (S.185/A.2351) – This bill would repeal a provision of law that allows a landlord to increase the per month price of a rent stabilized unit by up to 20% upon the apartment becoming vacant. Raising the price of rent between tenants will be subject to the same rules as raising the price of an apartment during an uninterrupted occupancy.

Require preferential rent prices are maintained until a vacancy occurs (S.2845a/A.4349) – Currently, landlords are allowed to give a tenant a preferential rent, which is a price agreed to at the initial lease signing that is below the maximum allowable rent by law. Landlords, upon the renewal of a lease, can adjust the rent up to legal maximum allowable rate. This bill would require the preferential rate be carried through until a vacancy occurs.

End rent increases triggered by major capital improvements (S.3693/A.6322) – This bill eliminates the ability of a landlord to permanently raise rents on a rent-regulated apartment due to the addition of a building-wide improvement or replacement of a building system.

End rent increase triggered by individual apartment improvements (S.3770/A.6465) – This bill would eliminate the ability of a landlord to permanently raise the rent of a rent-stabilized apartment due to repairs or renovations made to a specific apartment.

Eliminate the statute of limitations for the filing of an overcharge complaint (S.4169/A.5251) – Currently the statute of limitations for the filing of an overcharge complaint is four years.

Rent control and rent stabilization rate parity (S.299a/A.167) – This bill would cap the maximum rent increase on rent controlled apartments at the same rate as rent stabilized apartments. Rent controlled apartments are currently allowed to increase rent at a rate of 7.5% per year, while rent stabilized apartment rate are a determined by a board which utilizes a formula and evaluates a “wide range of economic factors to determine an appropriate increase” and can vary on a year to year basis. The rate increase for rent stabilized units is typically much lower than the rate increase for a rent controlled unit.

Governor Cuomo responded in a statement:

“We are quickly coming to the end of the legislative session and there are a number of important issues where progress hangs in the balance. While there is much discussion and negotiation, clarity is of paramount importance at this point. Rent reform is one of the most important priorities. It expires in 10 days. The Assembly has put out nine rent reform bills. The Senate said yesterday that they have the votes to pass the nine rent reform bills. I call on the Senate to pass the bills today. I am ready to sign the bills if they pass. If they do not pass the bills today it means they cannot and New Yorkers should know the respective positions so we can pass a new law before the expiration of the existing rent law on June 15.”

Senate Minority Leader John Flanagan released a statement on the rent package:

“With less than three weeks left in this year’s legislative session, Democrats are seriously considering passage of the most sweeping rent control laws in New York’s history. Doing so would be a colossal mistake that would discourage investment, stifle growth, and undermine our state’s economy.

“While many New Yorkers support modest rent reforms, Democrats in the Senate and Assembly are not contemplating those kinds of changes. Instead, they are in serious discussions to extend rent control far beyond New York City to the suburbs and Upstate. The people who live there are not calling for changes to the state’s rent laws to apply to their communities, but still the New York City politicians who dominate the Legislature can’t help but bring their New York City-centric view to the rest of the state. And, while there is no housing crisis Upstate, passage of a bill that includes Upstate will surely create one.

“Worse still is the so-called “Good Cause” bill pending in the Senate, a draconian measure that would create virtual lifetime tenancy for apartment dwellers with only insignificant increases in rent. Under this legislation, owners would no longer be able make adjustments to the rent to reflect improvements made on the premises or an increase in property taxes. A renter could simply refuse to pay any proposed new rent and drag the owner to court, where he or she would have no real recourse. If this bill passes, no apartment owner will ever again seek to improve or modernize an existing facility or build a new one leading to blight, decay, and a collapse in property values in communities all throughout this state.

“The rent law changes Democrats are pushing in Albany go well beyond what is prudent and what is necessary, and would be disastrous for both Upstate and the New York City suburbs. It will lead to less affordable housing and less housing overall. It’s time for Democrats to step back and rethink what bringing rent control to our entire state really means.”