S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
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                                  5584

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            February 27, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  M. of A. KAVANAGH, ROSENTHAL, MOSLEY, ROBINSON -- Multi-
  Sponsored by -- M. of A. FARRELL, GOTTFRIED, PERRY --  read  once  and
  referred to the Committee on Housing

AN  ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York and the
  emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four, in  relation
  to the establishment of rent boards

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Subdivision a of section 26-510 of the administrative  code
of the city of New York is amended to read as follows:
  a.  There shall be a rent guidelines board to consist of nine members,
appointed by the mayor UPON THE ADVICE AND CONSENT OF THE CITY  COUNCIL.
Two  members  shall be representative of tenants, two shall be represen-
tative of owners of property, and five shall be public members [each  of
whom].  EACH  OF  THE  PUBLIC MEMBERS shall have had at least five years
experience in [either] PUBLIC SERVICE, SOCIAL SERVICES, URBAN  PLANNING,
SOCIAL  SCIENCES, finance, economics or housing. One public member shall
be designated by the mayor UPON THE ADVICE AND CONSENT OF THE CITY COUN-
CIL to serve as [chairman] CHAIR and shall hold no other public  office.
No  member,  officer or employee of any municipal rent regulation agency
or the state division of housing and community renewal and no person who
owns or manages real estate covered by this law  or  who  [is]  RECEIVES
COMPENSATION  AS  an  officer  of any owner or tenant organization shall
serve on a rent guidelines board. One public member, one  member  repre-
sentative of tenants and one member representative of owners shall serve
for  a term ending two years from January first next succeeding the date
of their appointment; one public member, one  member  representative  of
tenants  and  one  member representative of owners shall serve for terms
ending three years from the January first next succeeding  the  date  of
their  appointment  and  two public members shall serve for terms ending
four years from  January  first  next  succeeding  the  dates  of  their

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD00839-01-5
              

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appointment.  [The  chairman  shall serve at the pleasure of the mayor.]
Thereafter, all members shall continue in office until their  successors
have been appointed and qualified. The mayor UPON THE ADVICE AND CONSENT
OF  THE CITY COUNCIL shall fill any vacancy which may occur by reason of
death,  resignation  or  otherwise  in  a  manner  consistent  with  the
[original  appointment]  PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION. A member may be
removed by the mayor OR CITY COUNCIL  for  cause,  but  not  without  an
opportunity  to be heard in person or by counsel, in his or her defense,
upon not less than ten days notice. A SUCCESSOR TO SUCH MEMBER SHALL  BE
APPOINTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION TO SERVE
THE BALANCE OF THE TERM OF THE MEMBER WHO WAS REMOVED.
  S  2.  Subdivision  a  of section 4 of section 4 of chapter 576 of the
laws of 1974, constituting the emergency tenant protection act of  nine-
teen  seventy-four,  as  amended  by chapter 349 of the laws of 1979, is
amended to read as follows:
  a. In each county wherein any city having a population  of  less  than
one  million  or  any town or village has determined the existence of an
emergency pursuant to section three of this act, there shall be  created
a  rent  guidelines  board  to  consist of nine members appointed by the
commissioner of housing and community renewal upon recommendation of the
county legislature which recommendation shall be made within thirty days
after the first local declaration of an emergency in  such  county;  two
such  members shall be representative of tenants, two shall be represen-
tative of owners of property, and five shall be public members [each  of
whom].  EACH  OF  THE  PUBLIC MEMBERS shall have had at least five years
experience in [either] PUBLIC SERVICE, SOCIAL SERVICES, URBAN  PLANNING,
SOCIAL  SCIENCES, finance, economics or housing. One public member shall
be designated by the commissioner to serve as [chairman] CHAIR and shall
hold no other public office. No  member,  officer  or  employee  of  any
municipal  rent  regulation  agency or the state division of housing and
community renewal and no person who owns or manages real estate  covered
by  this  law  or  who is an officer of any owner or tenant organization
shall serve on a rent guidelines board. One public  member,  one  member
representative  of tenants and one member representative of owners shall
serve for a term ending two years from January first next succeeding the
date of their appointment; one public member, one member  representative
of tenants and one member representative of owners shall serve for terms
ending  three  years  from the January first next succeeding the date of
their appointment and three public members shall serve for terms  ending
four  years  from  January  first  next  succeeding  the  dates of their
appointment.   Thereafter, all members shall serve  for  terms  of  four
years  each.    Members  shall continue in office until their successors
have been appointed and  qualified.  The  commissioner  shall  fill  any
vacancy  which may occur by reason of death, resignation or otherwise in
a manner consistent with the [original appointment] PROVISIONS  OF  THIS
SUBDIVISION.  A member may be removed by the commissioner for cause, but
not without an opportunity to be heard in person or by counsel,  in  his
defense,  upon not less than ten days notice. A SUCCESSOR TO SUCH MEMBER
SHALL BE APPOINTED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SUBDIVISION
TO SERVE THE BALANCE OF THE TERM OF THE MEMBER WHO WAS REMOVED.  Compen-
sation  for the members of the board shall be at the rate of one hundred
dollars per day, for no more than twenty days a year,  except  that  the
[chairman]  CHAIR  shall be compensated at the rate of one hundred twen-
ty-five dollars a day for no more than thirty days  a  year.  The  board
shall be provided staff assistance by the division of housing and commu-
nity  renewal.  The  compensation of such members and the costs of staff

A. 5584                             3

assistance shall be paid  by  the  division  of  housing  and  community
renewal  which  shall  be reimbursed in the manner prescribed in section
four of this act. The local legislative body of each city having a popu-
lation  of  less  than one million and each town and village in which an
emergency has been determined to  exist  as  herein  provided  shall  be
authorized  to  designate  one  person  who  shall  be representative of
tenants and one person who shall be representative of owners of property
to serve at its pleasure and without compensation to advise  and  assist
the  county rent guidelines board in matters affecting the adjustment of
rents for housing accommodations in such city, town or  village  as  the
case may be.
  S 3. This act shall take effect January 1, 2016; provided that:
  (a)  the amendments to section 26-510 of the rent stabilization law of
nineteen hundred sixty-nine made by section one of this act shall expire
on the same date as such law expires and shall not affect the expiration
of such law as provided under section 26-520 of such law;
  (b) the amendments to section 4 of the emergency tenant protection act
of nineteen seventy-four made by section two of this act shall expire on
the same date as such act expires and shall not affect the expiration of
such act as provided in section 17 of chapter 576 of the laws of 1974;
  (c) the rent boards as reconstituted pursuant to  this  act  shall  be
appointed  and confirmed within forty-five days after the effective date
of this act; and
  (d) upon the appointment of a rent board pursuant to the provisions of
this act, any existing predecessor rent board  shall  be  dissolved  and
such predecessor rent board shall have no further authority.