City Council Adopts Rent Regulations Resolutions Package

The City Council recently passed several resolutions calling on the State Legislature to strengthen rent laws. Although the state law on rent regulation doesn’t expire until next June, it’s possible that the State Legislature may pursue the renewal of rent laws before the end of its legislative session. And the City Council is urging the state to make the changes that are called for in the resolutions.

Resolutions allow the City Council to express a collective voice of New York City, and can play an important role in the development of law and public policy throughout New York State and across the nation. The resolution package passed consists of State Legislation Resolutions (SLR), where the City Council makes an official request of the New York State Legislature (also known as a “Home Rule Message”) to pass a special law affecting New York City. The following are the eight resolutions:

• Resolution No. 326, sponsored by Speaker Corey Johnson, calls on the state to enact S.6527/A.6285, in order to limit rent increases where landlords are charging a preferential rent and would allow an increase from a preferential rent to a legal regulated rent only upon vacancy of the unit, not at renewal.
• Resolution No. 325, sponsored by Speaker Corey Johnson, calls on the state to enact S. 3179/A.5557, which would repeal the “Urstadt law” and allow New York City to regulate residential rents.
• Resolution No. 327, sponsored by Speaker Corey Johnson, calls on the state to enact legislation extending the statute of limitations for rent overcharges.
• Resolution No. 328, sponsored by Speaker Corey Johnson, calls on the state to enact legislation that would require the surcharge to cease once the owner recoups the cost of building-wide improvements.
• Resolution No. 332, sponsored by Council Member Robert Cornegy, calls upon the state to enact S.1593/A.9815, which would repeal the vacancy bonus.
• Resolution No. 331, sponsored by Council Member Robert Cornegy, calls on the state to enact legislation that would repeal vacancy decontrol.
• Resolution No. 339, sponsored by Council Member Keith Powers, states that the City Council supports state legislation that would set the percentage rent increase available to owners of certain rent-controlled apartments to the lesser of 7.5 percent or an amount equal to the average of the previous five Rent Guidelines Board increases.
• Resolution No. 340, sponsored by Council Member Carlina Rivera, states that the City Council supports state legislation that would extend rent stabilization to unregulated apartments.