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Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
History
- Print number 177a
- Amend and recommit to aging
- Referred to aging
- Referred to aging
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Provides additional rent protection for senior citizens whose household income does not exceed $70,000 in cases where their rent is more than one half of their income
In Assembly Committee · Aging · Sponsor Luis R. Sepúlveda
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the real property tax law, in relation to adding rent protection for senior citizens whose household income does not exceed seventy thousand dollars in cases where their rent is more than one-half of their income
Purpose or general idea of bill
This bill would amend the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exemption (SCRIE) statutes to protect an additional category of senior citizen tenants, who do not fall within current statutory income limitations, but who nonetheless are being subjected to rent increases that constitute an unaffordable proportion of their incomes and therefore need protection.
Summary of specific provisions
Section 1. Amends the Real Property Tax Law (RPTL), section 467-b, by adding a new subdivision 11. Permits a locality to adopt a local law that provides additional protections for senior citizens where the head of household is sixty-two years of age or older and whose household income does not exceed seventy thousand dollars in cases where their rent is more than one-half of their income.
Read the full memo (672 words)
Section 2. Amends the Real Property Tax Law, section 467-c, by adding a new subdivision 13. Permits a locality to adopt a local law that provides additional protections for senior citizens who reside in Mitchell-Lama dwellings where the head of household is sixty-two years of age or older and whose household income does not exceed seventy thousand dollars in cases where their rent is more than one-half of their income.
Section 3. Effective Date.
Existing law
Real Property Tax Law; Section 467-b; Tax abatement for rent-controlled and rent regulated property occupied by senior citizens or persons with disabilities and Real Property Tax Law; Section 467-c; Exemption for property owned by certain housing companies and occupied by senior citizens or persons with disabilities.
Justification
Current law authorizes adoption of local laws to protect senior citizen tenants who: 1) have combined household incomes under a specific income cap, set out on a yearly basis in the Real Property Tax Law (RPTL), and 2) have rents that will increase to exceed one third of the household income. Unfortunately, in New York City and some surrounding areas, rents - - even regulated rents - have become so high that some senior citizens whose incomes exceed the statutory income limitations find themselves paying an unaffordable percentage of their incomes for rent. This bill would therefore permit localities to extend additional protection to such people, without in any way changing or diminishing the protection that is already in place for senior citizen households whose income falls below the statutory caps.
An analysis of data from the 2005 New York City Housing Vacancy Survey performed by the Community Service Society found that if the change proposed by this bill were to be made, an additional approximately 1100 households would qualify for the benefit. It should also be noted that, under current law, only approximately one third of eligible households have applied for and received the benefit, so it can be anticipated that not all newly eligible households would apply if this bill were to become law. However, those in need of protection would be able to apply for it.
The amendments made by sections one and two of this bill would permit localities to extend similar protection to senior citizen households for which a rent increase would cause the rent to exceed one half of household income, without regard to the income caps that apply to situations where rent exceeds one third of household income.
Prior legislative history
2014: S.17A - Referred to Aging/A.32A - Referred to Aging 2013: S.17A - Amended and Recommitted to Aging/A.32A - Amended and Recommitted to Aging 2012: S.483 - Referred to Housing, Construction and Community Development 2011: S.483 - Discharged from Aging and Committed to Housing, Construction and Community Development 2009-10: S.7539 - Reported and Committed to Finance/A.2446 - Referred to Aging 2008: A.10759 - Referred to Aging
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately, with provisions.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.