BILL NUMBER: S2451A
SPONSOR: KAVANAGH
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the real property tax law and the administrative code of
the city of New York, in relation to establishing a maximum rent of
one-third of household income for the senior citizens rent increase
exemption (SCRIE) and disability rent increase exemption (DRIE)
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to authorize, at a locality's opt in via
local action, the setting of the portion of rent a tenant is responsible
to pay under the SCRIE and DRIE programs to no more than one-third of
their householdò income.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
The bill amends section 467-b subdivision 4 of the real property tax law
by adding a new paragraph c that prescribes the framework for the local
administration of the SCRIE and DRIE programs to ensure that a partic-
ipating tenant's portion of rent does not exceed one third of household
income.
It also adds language to subdivision (a) of section 26-605 of the Admin-
istrative Code of the City of New York to codify, pursuant to local
action, that the amount of the maximum rent or legal regulated rent
under the SCRIE and DRIE programs cannot exceed one third of household
income. The bill repeals sections of current law that prescribes the
former method of allocating SCRIE and DRIE awards.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
The SCRIE (Senior Citizens Rent Increase Exemption) and DRIE (Disabled
Rent Increase Exemption) programs serve seniors or people with disabili-
ties whose household income is no more than $50,000 a year, live in a
rent-regulated apartment, and pay more than one-third of their income in
rent, by freezing tenants' rent at the rent they paid when they entered
the program. While these programs have helped keep thousands of seniors
and people with disabilities in their homes, many tenants in SCRIE and
DRIE are still severely rent-burdened, and struggle to get by in the
face of decades of rent and price increases without a corresponding
increase in retirement and social security benefits.
This bill would provide localities the option to limit the rent that a
tenant is responsible to pay under the SCRIE and DRIE programs to one-
third of their household income. This would provide a great relief to
some of the neediest New Yorkers -- according to a 2016 study by LiveOn
New York, 60% of seniors who are enrolled in the SCRIE program pay over
50% of their income in rent, which leads to many having to skip meals in
order to pay their rent and stay in their homes. Capping rents at one-
third of tenants' income would help ensure that SCRIE and DRIE tenants
will be able to live with dignity and security.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: S569 (Kavanagh) - REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO FINANCE /A2974
(O'Donnell) referred to aging
2023: S569 (Kavanagh) - REPORTED AND COMMITTED TO FINANCE /A2974
(O'Donnell) - referred to aging
2022: S2806 aging (Kavanagh) - REFERRED TO AGING /A4433 (O'Donnell) -
referred to aging
2021: S2806 aging (Kavanagh) - REFERRED TO AGING /A4433 (O'Donnell) -
referred to aging
2020: S7754 aging (Kavanagh) - REFERRED TO AGING /A8749 (O'Donnell) -
referred to aging
2018: S7057 (Golden) - ADVANCED TO THIRD READING /A8424 (Abbate) -
referred toaging aging
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately; provided that the amendments to
section 26-509 of chapter 4 of title 26 of the administrative code of
the city of New York made by section four of this act shall expire on
the same date as such law expires and shall not affect the expiration of
such law as provided under section 26-520 of such law.

Statutes affected:
S2451: 467-b real property tax law, 467-b(4) real property tax law, 26-509 administrative code of the city of New York as amended by local law, 26-509(b) administrative code of the city of New York as amended by local law
S2451A: 467-b real property tax law, 467-b(4) real property tax law, 26-509 administrative code of the city of New York as amended by local law, 26-509(b) administrative code of the city of New York as amended by local law