BILL NUMBER: S6452
SPONSOR: CLEARE
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seven-
ty-four, the administrative code of the city of New York and the real
property tax law, in relation to reporting rent concessions
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to clarify that rent concessions should be
factored into the calculation of a rent that is reported to the Division
of Housing and Community Renewal for the purposes of the rent stabiliza-
tion laws and to that end to require rent concessions to be reported in
annual rent registration statements.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one is the legislative intent and findings.
Section two amends the emergency tenant protection act of 1974 to
require that rent concessions are reported on annual rent registration
statements with the DHCR and that the current rent reported by a land-
lord on such statements reflects the "net effective rent," which
includes the value of concessions. Section two defines "concession" and
"net effective rent" for the purposes of the subdivision.
Section three makes the same changes to the New York City Admin. Code.
Section four requires that annual rent registration statements are
amended to reflect the "net effective rent" paid by tenants and any
rental concessions offered going back to March 1, 2020.
Section five amends RPTL § 421-a to include the value of rental conces-
sions in the definition of "adjusted monthly rent."
Section six is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
The use of rental concessions to undermine the rent stabilization laws
(RBL) has become commonplace in recent years and widespread after the
outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Landlords offered tenants highly-dis-
counted rents through the use of rental concessions while reporting a
different-higher-rent to the Division of Housing and Community Renewal.
When leases have come due for renewal, tenants in rent-stabilized units
have faced rent increases far in excess of those permitted by the rent
stabilization laws. This practice undermines the spirit and the purpose
of the RSL and must end.
This bill aims to clarify, for the purposes of the RSL, that rent
concessions effectively create a preferential rent and should be treated
similarly under the law. Although a correct interpretation of the law
should reach the same conclusion regardless of the legislature's clar-
ification, in order to effectuate the meaning and intent of the RSL the
bill also requires rental concessions to be reported in annual rent
registration statements and requires that the rent reported to the DHCR
in such statements is inclusive of the value of concessions. Ultimately
this bill will close a mile-wide loophole to ensure that the rent
stabilization laws are not undermined and that rent stabilized tenants
who faced unfair and illegal rent overcharges since the beginning of the
COVID-19 pandemic can seek appropriate reductions in rent and damages
they might be owed.
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
None.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This bill is effective immediately.