STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1453 2025-2026 Regular Sessions IN SENATE January 10, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. KAVANAGH, CLEARE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction and Community Development AN ACT to amend the multiple dwelling law, in relation to rent impairing violations; and to amend the real property actions and proceedings law, in relation to eviction proceedings The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Subdivision 3 of section 302-a of the multiple dwelling 2 law, as added by chapter 911 of the laws of 1965, is amended to read as 3 follows: 4 3. a. If (i) the official records of the department shall note that a 5 rent impairing violation exists or existed in respect to a multiple 6 dwelling and that notice of such violation has been given by the depart- 7 ment, by mail, to the owner last registered with the department and (ii) 8 such note of the violation [is] was not cancelled or removed of record 9 within [six] three months after the date of such notice of such 10 violation, then for the period that such violation remains uncorrected 11 after the expiration of said [six] three months, no rent shall be recov- 12 ered by any owner for any premises in such multiple dwelling used by a 13 resident thereof for human habitation in which the condition constitut- 14 ing such rent impairing violation exists, provided, however, that if the 15 violation is one that requires approval of plans by the department for 16 the corrective work and if plans for such corrective work shall have 17 been duly filed within [three months] one month from the date of notice 18 of such violation by the department to the owner last registered with 19 the department, the [six-months] three month period aforementioned shall 20 not begin to run until the date that plans for the corrective work are 21 approved by the department; if plans are not filed within said [three- 22 months] one month period or if so filed, they are disapproved and amend- 23 ments are not duly filed within thirty days after the date of notifica- EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD04185-01-5
S. 1453 2 1 tion of the disapproval by the department to the person having filed the 2 plans, the [six-months] three month period shall be computed as if no 3 plans whatever had been filed under this proviso. If a condition consti- 4 tuting a rent impairing violation exists in the part of a multiple 5 dwelling used in common by the residents or in the part under the 6 control of the owner thereof, the violation shall be deemed to exist in 7 the respective premises of each resident of the multiple dwelling. 8 b. The provisions of subparagraph a shall not apply if (i) the condi- 9 tion referred to in the department's notice to the owner last registered 10 with the department did not in fact exist, notwithstanding the notation 11 thereof in the records of the department; (ii) the condition which is 12 the subject of the violation has in fact been corrected within the three 13 month period required by subparagraph a of this subdivision, though the 14 note thereof in the department has not been removed or cancelled; (iii) 15 the violation has been caused by the resident from whom rent is sought 16 to be collected or by members of [his] such resident's family or by 17 [his] such resident's guests or by another resident of the multiple 18 dwelling or the members of the family of such other resident or by [his] 19 such other resident's guests, or (iv) the resident proceeded against for 20 rent has refused entry to the owner for the purpose of correcting the 21 condition giving rise to the violation. 22 c. To raise a defense under subparagraph a in any action to recover 23 rent or in any special proceeding for the recovery of possession because 24 of non-payment of rent, the resident must affirmatively plead and prove 25 the material facts under subparagraph a[, and must also deposit with the 26 clerk of the court in which the action or proceeding is pending at the 27 time of filing of the resident's answer the amount of rent sought to be 28 recovered in the action or upon which the proceeding to recover 29 possession is based, to be held by the clerk of the court until final 30 disposition of the action or proceeding at which time the rent deposited 31 shall be paid to the owner, if the owner prevails, or be returned to the 32 resident if the resident prevails. Such deposit of rent shall vitiate 33 any right on the part of the owner to terminate the lease or rental 34 agreement of the resident because of nonpayment of rent]. 35 d. If a resident voluntarily pays rent or an installment of rent when 36 [he] such resident would be privileged to withhold the same under 37 subparagraph a, [he] such resident shall [not thereafter] have [any] a 38 claim or cause of action to recover back the rent or installment of rent 39 so paid. A voluntary payment within the meaning hereof shall mean 40 payment other than one made pursuant to a judgment in an action or 41 special proceeding. 42 e. [If upon the trial of any action to recover rent or any special 43 proceeding for the recovery of possession because of non-payment of rent 44 it shall appear that the resident has raised a defense under this 45 section in bad faith, or has caused the violation or has refused entry 46 to the owner for the purpose of correcting the condition giving rise to 47 the violation, the court, in its discretion, may impose upon the resi- 48 dent the reasonable costs of the owner, including counsel fees, in main- 49 taining the action or proceeding not to exceed one hundred dollars.] The 50 department shall notify the resident and owner when a rent impairing 51 violation has been placed in their apartment. The notification shall 52 include a list of the rent impairing violations placed and an explana- 53 tion of the resident's right to raise the rent impairing violations as a 54 defense in any action to recover rent or in any special proceeding for 55 the recovery of possession because of non-payment of rent.
S. 1453 3 1 § 2. Subdivisions 10 and 11 of section 713 of the real property 2 actions and proceedings law, subdivision 10 as amended by chapter 467 of 3 the laws of 1981 and subdivision 11 as added by chapter 312 of the laws 4 of 1962, are amended to read as follows: 5 10. The person in possession has entered the property or remains in 6 possession by force or unlawful means and [he or his] such person or 7 such person's predecessor in interest was not in quiet possession for 8 three years before the time of the forcible or unlawful entry or detain- 9 er and the petitioner was peaceably in actual possession at the time of 10 the forcible or unlawful entry or in constructive possession at the time 11 of the forcible or unlawful detainer. Any lawful occupant, physically or 12 constructively in possession, who has been evicted or dispossessed with- 13 out the court process mandated by section seven hundred eleven of this 14 article, may commence a proceeding under this subdivision to be restored 15 to possession, and shall be so restored upon proof that their eviction 16 was unlawful; no notice to quit shall be required in order to maintain a 17 proceeding under this subdivision. 18 11. The person in possession entered into possession as an incident to 19 employment by petitioner, and the time agreed upon for such possession 20 has expired or, if no such time was agreed upon, the employment has been 21 terminated[; no notice to quit shall be required in order to maintain 22 the proceeding under this subdivision]. 23 § 3. Subdivisions 2 and 3 of section 732 of the real property actions 24 and proceedings law, as amended by section 14 of part M of chapter 36 of 25 the laws of 2019, are amended to read as follows: 26 2. If the respondent answers, the clerk shall fix a date for trial or 27 hearing not less than three nor more than eight days after joinder of 28 issue, and shall immediately notify by mail the parties or their attor- 29 neys of such date. If the determination be for the petitioner, the issu- 30 ance of a warrant shall not be stayed for more than five days from such 31 determination, except as provided in section seven hundred fifty-three 32 of this article. If the respondent fails to appear on such date, the 33 court, after making an assessment, pursuant to section thirty-two 34 hundred fifteen of the civil practice law and rules, may issue a judg- 35 ment in favor of the petitioner and the issuance of the warrant shall be 36 stayed for a period not to exceed ten days from the date of service, 37 except as provided in section seven hundred fifty-three of this article. 38 3. If the respondent fails to answer within ten days from the date of 39 service, as shown by the affidavit or certificate of service of the 40 notice of petition and petition, [the judge shall render judgment in 41 favor of the petitioner and] the petitioner may make an application for 42 a default judgment. Upon this application, the clerk shall fix a date 43 for inquest and immediately notify by mail the parties or their attor- 44 neys of such date. If the respondent fails to appear on such date, the 45 court, after making an assessment, pursuant to section thirty-two 46 hundred fifteen of the civil practice law and rules, may issue a judg- 47 ment in favor of the petitioner and may stay the issuance of the warrant 48 for a period of not to exceed ten days from the date of service, except 49 as provided in section seven hundred fifty-three of this article. 50 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to all 51 pending proceedings on and after such date.