STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 375 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY (Prefiled) January 8, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. VANEL -- read once and referred to the Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring verification of property and rental listings on online property marketplaces The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 2 396-ddd to read as follows: 3 § 396-ddd. Verification of property and rental listings on online 4 property marketplaces. 1. No online property marketplace shall allow a 5 property or rental to be listed on its website, application or software 6 nor permit any person to claim ownership of an existing property or 7 rental listing without first verifying that the person listing or claim- 8 ing the property or rental is authorized to do so. For the purposes of 9 this section, "online property marketplace" shall mean any website, 10 application, or software connected to the internet which, in the regular 11 course of business, allows members of the public to add and view proper- 12 ty or rental listings and which provide a contact method or contact 13 information to contact the owners or agents of such properties or rental 14 listings. 15 2. The verification required by subdivision one of this section shall 16 be conducted through a method reasonably designed to detect and prevent 17 fraudulent property or rental claims and listings. 18 3. An online property marketplace shall be liable for a civil penalty 19 of five hundred dollars per listing which is listed or claimed in 20 violation of this section. 21 § 2. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a 22 law. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD01926-01-5