BILL NUMBER: S450
SPONSOR: HOYLMAN-SIGAL
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the real property tax law, in relation to prohibiting
landlords from including incorrect information relating to rent decon-
trol in certain leases and renewals thereof and requires the standardi-
zation of certain notices pertaining to units subject to the Affordable
New York Housing Program
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill adds a new section 235-i to the Real Property Law
establishing that a landlord who willfully includes information he or
she knows to be misleading or incorrect in any notice provided pursuant
to a particular requirement of the Real Property Tax Law is guilty of a
violation punishable by a fine of $1,000.
Section 2 of the bill amends section 421-a(2)(f)(ii) to state that the
notice required by that subdivision shall not be included in any lease
of a rental unit that will remain subject to rent regulation or rent
control after the expiration of 421-a tax benefits.
Section 3 of the bill is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Under current law, landlords receiving 421-a tax benefits are required
to provide tenants, when commencing or renewing a lease, with a notice
informing the tenant that the apartment shall become subject to decon-
trol upon the expiration of the tax benefits and providing an approxi-
mate date when such expiration will occur.
While this requirement, when properly adhered to, helps provide impor-
tant notice to rent regulated tenants that they may soon face a rent
increase, some landlords reportedly include such notices even in
instances where units will not become subject to decontrol upon the
expiration of 421-a benefits due to such units being subject to contin-
ued rent regulation under a different program or law.
Tenants should not be receiving false or misleading information from
their landlords about the pending deregulation of their homes, partic-
ularly under the guise of an otherwise legally-required notice. This
legislation would prohibit landlords subject to the 421-a lease notice
requirement from willfully including misleading or incorrect information
about the pending deregulation of the apartment in the notice.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S.1610 of 2023-2024 (Hoylman-Sigal): Passed Senate
A.245 of 2023-2024 (Rosenthal): Died in Ways and Means
S.0076 of 2021-2022 (Hoylman): Committed to Rules
S.5651-A of 2019-2020 (Hoylman): Advanced to Third Reading
A.7990-A of 2019-2020 (Rosenthal L): Died in Housing
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the state.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the sixtieth day after it shall have
become a law and shall apply to all leases entered into, renewed or
extended on and after such date. Effective immediately the addition,
amendment and/or repeal of any rule or regulation necessary for the
implementation of this act on its effective date are authorized to be
made and completed on or before such date.

Statutes affected:
S450: 421-a real property tax law, 421-a(2) real property tax law