What's happening
The bill provides tax credits, insurance premium reductions, and state housing program support for removing or repairing fire hazards known as cock lofts.
Why it matters
Direct financial incentives for homeowners. By offering a tax credit of up to $5,000 (covering 25% of removal costs), the bill makes it financially easier for residents to eliminate potentially dangerous cock lofts, which are known to significantly worsen residential fires.
Reduces insurance costs for safer homes. Homeowners who install smoke detectors in cock lofts will be eligible for reduced fire insurance premiums, providing ongoing savings and creating a market incentive to address this fire hazard.
Aligns state housing programs with fire safety priorities. Public housing and state-supported home improvement programs will now explicitly include cock loft remediation as a qualifying use of funds, ensuring that fire prevention is integrated into broader state housing initiatives.
Targets a specific, overlooked fire hazard. Cock lofts, which are often hidden and hard to access, have been linked to rapid fire spread in older residential buildings. This bill’s targeted approach could prevent catastrophic fires and save lives, especially in communities with aging housing stock.
Albany, before your first meeting.
Every bill that moved yesterday, summarized in a sentence and ranked by impact. The Albany Scorecard follows on Sundays.
Free. Unsubscribe in one click. Want alerts on specific bills? Create an account.
Who cares
Headline styles
Incentivize Home Fire Prevention
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Substituted by S3065B
- Ordered to third reading rules cal.271
- Rules report cal.271
- Reported
- Reported referred to rules
- Print number 1878b
- Amend and recommit to ways and means
- Referred to ways and means
- Print number 1878a
- Amend (t) and recommit to ways and means
- Referred to ways and means
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.
Prevent Home Fire Hazards
Vetoed · Sponsor Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1878--B
2017-2018 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 13, 2017
Introduced by M. of A. LENTOL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted to the Committee on Ways and Means in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the tax law, the insurance law and the executive law, in relation to enacting the residential structure fire prevention act of
2018
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as the "residential structure fire prevention act of 2018".
§ 2. Section 606 of the tax law is amended by adding a new subsection (jjj) to read as follows:
(jjj) Credit for removing certain fire hazards. (1) Any resident owner of real property as defined in section one hundred two of the real property tax law shall be allowed a credit against the tax otherwise imposed under this article in an amount equal to twenty-five percent of the cost of removing fire hazards commonly known as cock lofts, provided that such credit shall not exceed five thousand dollars. For purposes of this section the term "cock loft" shall mean a completely enclosed space between rafters and a suspended ceiling.
(2) If the amount of the credit allowed under this subsection for any taxable year shall exceed the taxpayer's tax for such year, the excess shall be treated as an overpayment of tax to be credited or refunded in accordance with the provisions of section six hundred eighty-six of this article, provided, however, that no interest shall be paid thereon.
§ 3. Section 2346 of the insurance law is amended by adding a new subsection 6 to read as follows:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03403-04-8
A. 1878--B 2
6. The superintendent shall provide for an actuarially appropriate reduction in the rates of fire insurance premiums or the fire insurance component of homeowners insurance premiums applicable to residential real property equipped with smoke detecting alarm devices in cock lofts. The superintendent shall by regulation establish standards for smoke detecting alarm devices in cock lofts, including the safe and secure installation thereof. For the purposes of this subsection, "cock loft" shall mean a completely enclosed space between rafters and a suspended ceiling.
§ 4. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 170-c to read as follows:
§ 170-c. Repair of certain fire hazards. Any state agency or authority, including but not limited to the New York state energy research and development authority, division of housing and community renewal and state of New York mortgage agency, that provides a housing program shall include the repair of cock lofts for the purpose of fire prevention and safety as a qualifying expenditure under any such program. For the purposes of this section, "cock loft" shall mean a completely enclosed space between rafters and a suspended ceiling.
§ 5. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2019.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.