STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________

9802--B

IN ASSEMBLY

April 18, 2022 ___________

Introduced by M. of A. EPSTEIN, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, GLICK, MAMDANI, NIOU, GOTTFRIED, GALLAGHER, QUART, REYES, JACKSON, CARROLL, BICHOTTE HERME- LYN, AUBRY, BENEDETTO, FERNANDEZ, TAPIA, MITAYNES, SIMON, ANDERSON, CRUZ, GIBBS -- read once and referred to the Committee on Local Governments -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said committee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

AN ACT to amend the multiple dwelling law and the private housing finance law, in relation to establishing a program to address the legalization of specified basements and cellars and the conversion of other specified basements and cellars in a city with a population of one million or more

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

1 Section 1. The multiple dwelling law is amended by adding a new arti- 2 cle 7-D to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 7-D 4 LEGALIZATION AND CONVERSION OF BASEMENTS AND CELLARS 5 Section 288. Definitions. 6 289. Basement and cellar local laws and regulations. 7 290. Tenant protections in inhabited basements or cellars. 8 § 288. Definitions. As used in this article, unless the context or 9 subject matter requires otherwise, the following terms shall have the 10 following meanings: 11 1. The term "inhabited basement or cellar" means a basement or cellar 12 unlawfully occupied as a residence by one or more tenants on or prior to 13 the effective date of this article; 14 2. The term "rented" means leased, let, or hired out, with or without 15 a written agreement; and 16 3. The term "tenant" means an individual to whom an inhabited basement 17 or cellar is rented. 18 § 289. Basement and cellar local laws and regulations. 1. Notwith- 19 standing any other provision of state or local law to the contrary, in a

EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD14945-04-2

A. 9802--B 2

1 city with a population of one million or more, the local legislative 2 body may, by local law, establish a program to address, as appropriate, 3 and provided that safety is protected, (a) the legalization of specified 4 inhabited basements and cellars in existence prior to the effective date 5 of this article through conversion to legal dwelling units, or (b) the 6 conversion of other specified basements and cellars in existence prior 7 to the effective date of this article to legal dwelling units. The local 8 law authorized by this section, and any rules or regulations promulgated 9 thereunder, shall not be subject to environmental review. 10 2. The program established by such local law may provide to an owner 11 who converts an inhabited basement or cellar in accordance with a local 12 law authorized by this article or who otherwise abates the illegal occu- 13 pancy of a basement or cellar amnesty from prosecution, as applicable, 14 for violations of this chapter or other state law or local law, rules, 15 and the zoning resolution of such city, and resolution of any outstand- 16 ing judgments issued in connection with any violation of such laws, 17 rules or zoning resolution issued before the effective date of this 18 article. 19 3. Such local law may provide that any provision of this chapter or 20 any other state law or local law, rule or regulation, shall not be 21 applicable, as necessary, to provide for the alterations necessary for 22 the conversion of a specified inhabited basement or cellar or other 23 specified basement or cellar into a lawful dwelling unit. Any amendment 24 of the zoning resolution necessary to enact such program shall be 25 subject to a public hearing at the planning commission of such locality, 26 and approval by such commission and the legislative body of such local 27 government, but shall not require environmental review or any additional 28 land use review. 29 § 290. Tenant protections in inhabited basements or cellars. 1. The 30 program authorized by this article shall require an application to make 31 alterations to legalize an inhabited basement or cellar be accompanied 32 by a certification indicating whether such unit was rented to a tenant 33 on the effective date of this article, notwithstanding whether the occu- 34 pancy of such unit was authorized by law. A city may not use such 35 certification as the basis for an enforcement action for illegal occu- 36 pancy of such unit, provided that nothing contained in this article 37 shall be construed to limit such city from issuing a vacate order for 38 hazardous conditions, when appropriate. 39 2. The local law authorized by this article shall provide that a 40 tenant in occupancy at the time of the effective date of this article, 41 who is evicted or otherwise removed from such unit as a result of an 42 alteration necessary to bring an inhabited basement or cellar into 43 compliance with the standards established by the local law authorized by 44 this article, shall have a right of first refusal to return to such unit 45 as a tenant upon its first lawful occupancy as a legal dwelling unit, 46 notwithstanding whether the occupancy at the time of the effective date 47 of this article was authorized by law. Such local law shall specify how 48 to determine priority when multiple tenants may claim such right. 49 3. A tenant unlawfully denied a right of first refusal to return to a 50 legal dwelling unit, as provided pursuant to the local law authorized by 51 this article, shall have a cause of action in any court of competent 52 jurisdiction for compensatory damages or declaratory and injunctive 53 relief as the court deems necessary in the interests of justice, 54 provided that such compensatory relief shall not exceed the annual 55 rental charges for such legal dwelling unit.

A. 9802--B 3

1 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 472 of the private housing finance law, 2 as amended by chapter 479 of the laws of 2005, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special or local 5 law, a municipality, acting through an agency, is authorized: (a) to 6 make, or contract to make, loans to low and moderate income owner-occu- 7 pants of one to four unit existing private or multiple dwellings within 8 its territorial limits, subject to the limitation of subdivisions two 9 through seven of this section, in such amounts as shall be required for 10 the rehabilitation of such dwellings, provided, however, that such loans 11 shall not exceed sixty thousand dollars per dwelling unit, except that 12 the limitation on the maximum amount of a loan, as described in this 13 paragraph, shall not apply to any such loan for, in whole or in part, 14 rehabilitation of a specified inhabited basement or cellar or other 15 specified basement or cellar for which such owner has sought a permit 16 pursuant to the local law authorized pursuant to section two hundred 17 eighty-nine of the multiple dwelling law. Such loans may also include 18 the refinancing of the outstanding indebtedness of such dwellings, and 19 the municipality may make temporary loans or advances to such owner-oc- 20 cupants in anticipation of permanent loans for such purposes; and 21 (b) to make or contract to make grants to any owner described in para- 22 graph (a) of this subdivision, on the same terms as permitted under such 23 paragraph for a loan. 24 § 3. Section 472 of the private housing finance law is amended by 25 adding a new subdivision 1-a to read as follows: 26 1-a. As used in this article, the term "loan" shall include any grant 27 made by a municipality pursuant to this article, provided, however, that 28 provisions of this article concerning the repayment or forgiveness of, 29 or security for, a loan shall not apply to any grant made pursuant to 30 this article. 31 § 4. Subdivision 2 of section 473 of the private housing finance law, 32 as added by chapter 786 of the laws of 1987, is amended to read as 33 follows: 34 2. A municipality shall neither make nor participate in a loan to an 35 owner-occupant of an existing private or multiple dwelling pursuant to 36 this article unless the agency finds that the area in which such dwell- 37 ing is situated is a blighted, deteriorated or deteriorating area or has 38 a blighting influence on the surrounding area, or is in danger of becom- 39 ing a slum or a blighted area because of the existence of substandard, 40 unsanitary, deteriorating or deteriorated conditions, an aged housing 41 stock, or other factors indicating an inability of the private sector to 42 cause such rehabilitation to be made, except that any such finding shall 43 not be required for any such loan for, in whole or in part, rehabili- 44 tation of a specified inhabited basement or cellar or other specified 45 basement or cellar for which such owner has sought a permit pursuant to 46 the local law authorized pursuant to section two hundred eighty-nine of 47 the multiple dwelling law. 48 § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.