Governor Cuomo Opposes Outright Elimination of MCIs, IAIs

At a recent press conference, Gov. Cuomo rejected the idea of eliminating the major capital improvements (MCIs) and individual apartment improvements (IAIs) mechanisms for recouping owner capital investments in rent-regulated buildings. He said the package of reforms he and the state Legislature must agree upon should retain MCIs and IAIs but limit how long building owners can increase rents after improvements. "I support reforming them so that they're fair to the tenants," said Cuomo. "You want people to do capital improvements. But you don't want to reimburse more than the capital improvements."

The governor also dismissed calls from some advocates for universal rent control, a statewide expansion of rent regulation. Cuomo said he would be open to such a proposal only if a local government requested it. The governor has previously called for ending luxury deregulation, a process by which a unit escapes rent regulation once its monthly rent exceeds a certain threshold, currently $2,774.76. He also has expressed support for locking in "preferential rents” as the new baseline for future increases.

The legislature is scheduled to adjourn June 19.