Last night (6/20/23), the New York State Assembly joined the New York State Senate in passing two bills pertaining to the 2019 HSTPA and Rent Stabilization.
These bills address:
- combining/splitting apartments;
- rent registration;
- record retention;
- substantial rehabilitation;
- succession; and
- the effective undoing of the Court of Appeal’s decision in Regina (which had recognized a clear 4 year record retention rule and aligned the definition of “fraud” – regarding multifamily property owners – with all others accused of such conduct).
These bills would codify the very denial of due process that the State’s highest Court found unacceptable in Regina and would lower the threshold for finding fraud against property owners to an absurdly low level.
Our view is that these bills are not remedial; these bills are not mere “clarifications” — as the bills’ sponsors have claimed — Rather, they are draconian, destructive, punitive measures that will certainly be challenged in the Courts in the event Governor Hochul signs them into law. We hope that the Governor and her legal team recognize the legal improprieties of these bills and issue a firm “NO” and that no ill-conceived attempt is made to override that hoped for veto.