Legislative Update – March 2021

By Conor Gillis

Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan Proposes Good Cause Eviction Legislation
Mayor Kathy Sheehan announced in early February that she would be proposing the first municipal “good cause eviction” bill for the City of Albany. Currently, there is a good cause eviction proposal in the state legislature that is sponsored by Senator Julia Salazar and Assemblywoman Pam Hunter.

What is in the Good Cause Eviction proposal?

• Prohibit landlords from removing tenants from apartments without an order from a judge. The judge would decide if an eviction is for a good cause. The end of a lease is not a good cause, which can effectively prevent landlords from having control of their units.
• Provide tenants the right to continue to live in the unit regardless of lease status.
•  Prohibit rent increases of more than 3% or 1.5% of the consumer price.

The bill, if passed, essentially will cap rent increases in New York state at 3 percent per year regardless of the percentage increase in real estate taxes or other operating expenses and would give judges the power to decide if repairs and improvements are necessary in privately owned real estate.

Kathy Sheehan’s proposed good cause eviction bill has not yet been finalized. While we have not seen the final language GCAR is strongly opposed to this measure. We will continue to advocate against this proposal. If you have concerns with this bill, please reach out to Conor Gillis at cgillis@nysar.com.

Albany and Saratoga Counties Receive Federal Funding to Help Landlords
Both Albany and Saratoga counties recently announced the award of federal funding to assist landlords who have not received tenant rental payments due to the pandemic. The funding was provided through the US Treasury and made available to counties with over 200,000 residents through the Coronavirus Relief Package passed by Congress.

Albany County received $9 million in assistance and Saratoga County received $6.8 million. Both counties are developing processes for landlords to apply for the funding. GCAR will update the members once those processes are finalized.

NAR meets with White House on federal eviction moratorium
On February 11, NAR participated in a housing provider coalition call with the White House to discuss the CDC eviction moratorium and rental assistance challenges. Discussed during the call was the need to allow evictions for reasons other than non-payment, the need for access to the court system to have a neutral party as an arbiter of disputes, and clarity regarding how long the moratorium will last, among other issues. Read NAR’s Coronavirus: Housing Providers FAQs. NAR also commended the Biden administration for extending the foreclosure moratorium for homeowners through June 30, 2021, and extending the mortgage payment forbearance enrollment window until June 30, 2021.

NYSAR’s Legislative Steering Committee approves 2021 Legislative Priorities
NYSAR’s Legislative Steering Committee met virtually and approved NYSAR’s 2021 Legislative Priorities during the Mid-Winter Business Meetings. Included in this year’s priorities was support for several fair housing proposals recently passed by the State Senate addressing additional continuing education guidelines, new fines for fair housing violations, creation of a fair housing testing program fund, and a nominal increase in license renewal fees for brokers and salespersons. Additional priorities include protecting independent contractor status for real estate licensees, increased funding for rent relief for tenants and building owners, expanding access to homeownership and affordable housing, and standing in opposition to over-burdensome taxes and unnecessary regulations such as good cause eviction proposals. A full list of legislative priorities will be posted to nysar.com.