What's happening
This bill creates a pilot program for a legal hotline providing free advice to tenants, administered by the New York Attorney General.
Why it matters
Provides immediate, no-cost access to legal advice for tenants. who may otherwise be unable to afford or find legal help, potentially empowering them to better understand and assert their rights in housing disputes.
Limits the role of hotline attorneys to advice only. , meaning tenants receive guidance without representation—a structure that could efficiently help more people but may not fully address cases needing legal action.
Utilizes volunteer attorneys and funds from the Interest on Lawyer Account (IOLA) fund. , leveraging existing legal resources and funding mechanisms without creating new financial burdens for the state.
Centralizes tenant support under the Attorney General’s office. , signaling increased state involvement in tenant protections, which could set a precedent for broader legal aid initiatives if the pilot proves successful.
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
Tenant Legal Hotline Pilot
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
2 Co-sponsors
1 Multi-sponsor
History
- Referred to governmental operations
- Referred to governmental operations
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.
Tenant Legal Hotline Pilot
In Senate Committee · Finance · Sponsor Brad Hoylman-Sigal
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1279
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 14, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. QUART, BICHOTTE, JEAN-PIERRE -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. SIMON -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental Operations
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to establishing a pilot program to create a legal hotline for tenants
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 75 to read as follows:
§ 75. Legal hotline for tenants pilot program. 1. The attorney general shall establish a pilot program to create a legal hotline for tenants. The pilot program shall be administered by the attorney general.
2. The attorney general shall recruit attorneys to participate in the program. Attorneys will not be committed to representing any tenants that they advise through the program.
3. The legal hotline for tenants shall be accessible via a toll-free phone number that operates, at a minimum, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
4. Tenants shall call the hotline and describe their problem to an intake counselor, who shall refer the tenants to an appropriate and available volunteer attorney. After the referral, the attorney shall contact and advise the tenant.
5. All costs of the pilot program shall be paid for by the New York interest on lawyer account fund, pursuant to section ninety-seven-v of the state finance law.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01353-01-9
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.