Bill Text: NY A00490 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Introduced

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Relates to conditions precedent to the bringing of certain actions or proceedings.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-02-07 - print number 490a [A00490 Detail]

Download: New_York-2021-A00490-Introduced.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                           490

                               2021-2022 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                       (Prefiled)

                                     January 6, 2021
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. L. ROSENTHAL, GOTTFRIED, DINOWITZ -- Multi-Spon-
          sored by -- M.  of A. COLTON, GLICK, PERRY -- read once  and  referred
          to the Committee on Housing

        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  conditions  precedent  to  the  bringing  of  certain  actions  or
          proceedings

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  Section  26-412 of the administrative code of the city of
     2  New York is amended by adding a new subdivision g to read as follows:
     3    g. (1) It shall be unlawful for a  landlord  to  bring  an  action  or
     4  proceeding  for  rent or eviction against a tenant or tenants of housing
     5  accommodations that are subject to an outstanding official charge of, or
     6  an uncured, violation of any applicable building code. The pleadings  of
     7  the  landlord in any such action or proceeding shall be accompanied by a
     8  certificate from the department of  buildings  stating  whether  or  not
     9  there  are any such outstanding violations. In the event that a landlord
    10  disputes a violation, he or she shall so state in his or  her  pleadings
    11  his or her reasons for such dispute. He or she may then proceed with the
    12  action or proceeding.
    13    (2)  During the pendency of the dispute over the violation, the tenant
    14  or tenants shall pay rent, or any judgment or order therefor awarded  to
    15  the  landlord,  into an interest bearing account to be maintained by the
    16  court. If the disputed violation is resolved in the landlord's favor, he
    17  or she shall receive all such payments together with  interest  thereon.
    18  If  the  disputed  violation  is  resolved  against  the  landlord, such
    19  payments shall first be applied to funding the curing of such violations
    20  and the balance thereof, if any, shall then be paid to the landlord.  In
    21  the  event  that a landlord or tenant or tenants are able to demonstrate

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00538-01-1
        A. 490                              2

     1  financial necessity therefor, the court may, in  its  discretion,  apply
     2  funds  in its custody to the payment of utility bills, if such utilities
     3  are currently provided by the landlord,  and  the  making  of  necessary
     4  repairs  in  the  presence  of  conditions  that threaten the health and
     5  welfare of the tenant.
     6    § 2. The administrative code of the city of New  York  is  amended  by
     7  adding a new section 26-519.1 to read as follows:
     8    §  26-519.1  Conditions precedent to action or proceeding. a. It shall
     9  be unlawful for a landlord to bring an action or proceeding for rent  or
    10  eviction  against a tenant or tenants of housing accommodations that are
    11  subject to an outstanding official charge of, or an  uncured,  violation
    12  of  the  building code. The pleadings of the landlord in any such action
    13  or proceeding shall be accompanied by a certificate from the  department
    14  of  buildings  stating  whether  or  not  there are any such outstanding
    15  violations. In the event that a landlord disputes a violation, he or she
    16  shall so state in his or her pleadings  his  or  her  reasons  for  such
    17  dispute. He or she may then proceed with the action or proceeding.
    18    b.  During  the pendency of the dispute over the violation, the tenant
    19  or tenants shall pay rent, or any judgment or order therefor awarded  to
    20  the  landlord,  into an interest bearing account to be maintained by the
    21  court. If the disputed violation is resolved in the landlord's favor, he
    22  or she shall receive all such payments together with  interest  thereon.
    23  If  the  disputed  violation  is  resolved  against  the  landlord, such
    24  payments shall first be applied to funding the curing of such violations
    25  and the balance thereof, if any, shall then be paid to the landlord.  In
    26  the  event  that a landlord or tenant or tenants are able to demonstrate
    27  financial necessity therefor, the court may, in  its  discretion,  apply
    28  funds  in its custody to the payment of utility bills, if such utilities
    29  are currently provided by the landlord,  and  the  making  of  necessary
    30  repairs  in  the  presence  of  conditions  that threaten the health and
    31  welfare of the tenant.
    32    § 3. Section 4 of chapter 576 of the laws of  1974,  constituting  the
    33  emergency  tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, is amended by
    34  adding a new section 12-b to read as follows:
    35    § 12-b. Conditions precedent to action or proceeding. a. It  shall  be
    36  unlawful  for  a  landlord  to bring an action or proceeding for rent or
    37  eviction against a tenant or tenants of housing accommodations that  are
    38  subject  to  an outstanding official charge of, or an uncured, violation
    39  of any applicable building code. The pleadings of the  landlord  in  any
    40  such action or proceeding shall be accompanied by a certificate from the
    41  department  of  buildings  stating  whether  or  not  there are any such
    42  outstanding violations.
    43    b. During the pendency of the dispute over the violation,  the  tenant
    44  or  tenants shall pay rent, or any judgment or order therefor awarded to
    45  the landlord, into an interest bearing account to be maintained  by  the
    46  court. If the disputed violation is resolved in the landlord's favor, he
    47  or  she  shall receive all such payments together with interest thereon.
    48  If the  disputed  violation  is  resolved  against  the  landlord,  such
    49  payments shall first be applied to funding the curing of such violations
    50  and  the balance thereof, if any, shall then be paid to the landlord. In
    51  the event that a landlord or tenant or tenants are able  to  demonstrate
    52  financial  necessity  therefor,  the court may, in its discretion, apply
    53  funds in its custody to the payment of utility bills, if such  utilities
    54  are  currently  provided  by  the  landlord, and the making of necessary
    55  repairs in the presence of  conditions  that  threaten  the  health  and
    56  welfare of the tenant.
        A. 490                              3

     1    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately; provided that:
     2    (a)  the  amendment  to  section 26-412 of the city rent and rehabili-
     3  tation law made by section one of this act shall remain  in  full  force
     4  and effect only so long as the public emergency requiring the regulation
     5  and control of residential rents and evictions continues, as provided in
     6  subdivision  3  of section 1 of the local emergency housing rent control
     7  act; and
     8    (b) the addition of section 26-519.1 to chapter 4 of title 26  of  the
     9  administrative  code of the city of New York made by section two of this
    10  act shall expire on the same date as such  law  expires  and  shall  not
    11  affect  the  expiration  of such law as provided under section 26-520 of
    12  such law.