Directs New York city housing authority to first offer vacant apartments to mobility impaired tenants living on a higher floor

BILL NUMBER:S2184

Title of bill

An act to amend the public housing law, in relation to granting tenants, with a physically disabling condition that affects their mobility, a preference in occupying a vacant dwelling unit on a lower floor in the same building in projects operated by the New York city housing authority

Purpose

Allows current mobility impaired tenants in NYCHA housing to move to a lower floor if a unit becomes available.

Summary of provisions

Amends Section 402 of the public housing law by adding a new subdivision 10 that gives preference to current tenants upon a vacancy in their project to move to a lower floor if the vacant unit is the same size or smaller, and they or any other legal occupant residing with the tenant have a disabling condition that affects mobili- ty. If more the one individual would qualify to move, preference would be given to the tenant that has lived in the project the longest.

Justification

On May 29, 2009 a fire at Carlton Manor, a public hous- ing project in Far Rockaway, resulted in the death of a woman who lived with and cared for her daughter who was confined to a wheelchair. The fire began in their apartment which was on the tenth floor. This death highlighted the concern of public housing residents who live in higher floors of public housing projects and have a physically disabling condi- tion that affects mobility, to be given preference to move to a lower floor if a vacancy dwelling unit becomes available.

People with mobility impairments should be located as close to the ground floor as possible. This bill only impacts public housing projects owned and managed by the New York City Housing Authority.

Legislative history

S.7898 of 2010: Passed Senate S.4455 of 2012: Referred to Housing, Construction, and Community Development

Fiscal implications

None to the State.

Effective date

On the thirtieth day after becoming law.