BILL NUMBER: S3821
SPONSOR: RIVERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the state finance law, the public authorities law, the
energy law, the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-
four, the correction law, the tax law, the executive law and the labor
law, in relation to enacting the Livable New York act; and making an
appropriation therefor
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to provide green, affordable housing for New
Yorkers. It addresses New York's housing affordability, inequality, and
climate crises. This bill improves code enforcement to improve the
state's housing stock, develops new deeply affordable housing, requires
buildings to end reliance on highly polluting sources of energy, which
are the top source of the state's climate-heating pollution, and maxi-
mizes good, green jobs for all, including formerly incarcerated New
Yorkers. The bill authorizes and directs spending to achieve these major
objectives. The bill's spending provisions are intended to be funded by
separate legislation to increase state tax revenues from wealthy New
Yorkers.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of this bill provides the short title for this act to be known
and cited as the "Livable New York Act."
Section 2 of this bill provides legislative findings.
Section 3 of this bill amends the State Finance Law by adding a new
section 99-ss to create the Livable New York Fund, including two differ-
ent accounts: the "Energy Efficiency Transition Account" and the "Hous-
ing and Code Enforcement Account," to assist existing housing in transi-
tioning to energy efficiency and/or housing development subsidies.
Section 4 of this bill amends the Public Authorities Law by adding a new
section 1885 to establish a energy-efficient transition program to aid
in the transition of existing housing units' heating and cooling systems
to higher efficiency upgrades. The program would utilize the Livable New
York Fund.
Section 5 of this bill amends subdivisions 2 and 4 of section 1-103 of
the Energy Law to include certain references to chapter twenty-two in
the definitions of "office" and "commissioner."
Section 6 amends the energy law to create Article 22 the Building Energy
and Emissions Limits to set emissions limits and standards in buildings.
For buildings under 10,000 square feet: starting in 2030, the installa-
tion of combustion systems emitting 25 kg or more of CO2 per million
BTUs will be prohibited. For buildings 10,000 square feet or larger:
beginning in 2035, the same emissions prohibitions and exemptions will
apply as for smaller buildings. This article provides exemptions; for
example, emergency heating systems and certain building types, such as
hospitals and manufacturing facilities, are exempt, provided emissions
are minimized and electric systems are prioritized. Allows munici-
palities to implement stricter regulations.
Section 7 of this bill amends subdivision (a) of section 10-b of section
4 of chapter 576 of the Laws of 1974 by adding a new paragraph 14 to
prohibit temporary increases for improvements in buildings that comply
with the requirements under Article 22 of the Energy Law.
Section 8 of this bill amends subdivision 3 of section 170 of the
Correction Law, as amended by chapter 322 of the Laws of 2021, regarding
any incarcerated individual who volunteers to perform services for a
nonprofit organization would be paid at a minimum hourly wage of not
less than three dollars.
Sections 9, 10, 11, 12, and 13 of this bill amend sections 171, 177,
178, 184, and 186 of the Correction Law to ensure that any incarcerated
individual performing labor would be compensated for their labor in
accordance with the aforementioned article.
Section 14 of this bill amends section 187 of the Correction Law, as it
relates to earnings of incarcerated individuals, to ensure that no
incarcerated individual would be compensated an amount less than the
minimum wage set forth in article nineteen of the labor law for work
performed or work for which a wage is paid.
Section 15 of this bill amends the Correction Law by adding a new
section 628 to require DOCCS to regulate and create real-world experi-
ence job training experiences for individuals who are eligible for
release within two years.
Section 16 of this bill amends the Correction Law by adding a new
section 629 to create a formerly incarcerated wage subsidy program to
ensure that programs funded by the Livable New York Fund to hire and
employ individuals for not less than 12 months who have recently been
released from the department's custody.
Section 17 of this bill amends section 606 of the Tax Law, as it relates
to credits against tax, by adding a new subsection (ggg) to provide
specifications for the formerly incarcerated training program credit.
This addition allows a taxpayer to claim a credit for hiring, training,
and employing a formerly incarcerated individual. The amount of the
credit shall be 15% of the total wages paid.
Section 18 of this bill amends the Correction Law by adding a new
section 195 regarding labor programs to ensure health and safety
protections in all workspaces, including prohibiting discrimination.
This section refers to the Department of Labor for supervision.
Section 19 of this bill amends subdivision 2 of section 171 of the
Correction Law by adding a new subdivision 3 to provide on-the-job voca-
tional training for incarcerated individuals.
Section 20 of this bill amends subdivision 2 of section 371 of the Exec-
utive Law, as it relates to the statement of legislative findings of the
NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code Act, by adding a new para-
graph f to ensure that every building used as a home or residence
conforms with the enforcement requirements. ò
Section 21 of this bill amends section 376 of the Executive Law, as it
relates to the powers of the Secretary of State, by adding two new
subdivisions 7 and 8 to implement education programs to inform the
public of new code requirements.
Section 22 of this bill amends section 382 of the Executive Law, as it
relates to remedies under the NYS Uniform Fire Prevention and Building
Code Act, by adding two new subdivisions 5 and 6 to require the Secre-
tary to promulgate regulations for local governments and their author-
ized agents to perform inspections. This section refers to penalties for
those who do not comply with the provisions of the referenced law.
Section 23 of this bill amends the Labor Law by adding a new section
219-b, as it relates to restricting the use of employment verification
systems for apprenticeships, to prohibit apprenticeship programs from
using the federal electronic employment verification system known as
E-Verify, or a successor entity, to check the employment authorization
status of an individual currently in an apprenticeship program or an
applicant.
Section 24 of this bill amends subdivision 1 of section 811 of the Labor
Law, as it relates to powers and duties of industrial commissioner,
personnel, to add two new paragraphs (k) and (I) to foster partnerships
with high schools, community colleges, and nonprofits to recruit appren-
tices from disadvantaged groups and to create a mentorship program to
pair apprentices with journeyman professionals.
Section 25 of this bill amends section 260 of Article 13 of the Execu-
tive Law by adding a new title heading: "DIVISION OF HOUSING AND COMMU-
NITY RENEWAL."
Section 26 of this bill amends Article 13 of the Executive Law by adding
a new title 2 named the Housing Development Subsidy Program. This title
includes definitions and eligibility for the subsidy program.
Section 27 of this bill provides a severability clause.
Section 28 of this bill allocates three billion dollars ($3,000,000,000)
to the Livable New York Fund from unallocated state funds for implement-
ing the provisions of this act, as established pursuant to section 99-ss
of the State Finance Law.
Section 29 of this bill provides an effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
New Yorkers are hurt badly by the lack of affordable housing and the
accelerating climate crises. At the same time, the rich are getting
richer, with inequality by wealth at levels similar to the Gilded Age.
This bill would address these crises, together, by building and develop-
ing hundreds of thousands of units of deeply affordable housing; reduc-
ing air pollution at the pace and speed necessary to avoid global and
local climate catastrophes and protect public health; raising building
energy efficiency to reduce utility bills and cut air pollution; and
creating hundreds of thousands of good, career-track, family-supporting
jobs, including for formerly-incarcerated New Yorkers who are left
behind in our current system. This bill does not specify a revenue
source for the spending programs it authorizes but is envisioned to
operate in conjunction with increases in tax rates and payments from the
wealthiest New Yorkers, who should pay their fair share to address our
state's most pressing problems.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2024: S8676 Rivera / A9767 Shrestha
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
The act shall take effect immediately after it has become law.