Bill > A04877

This bill amends the Emergency Tenant Protection Act to expand local governments' ability to declare housing emergencies and regulate residential rents. For cities with over one million residents (like New York City), a housing emergency can be declared if the vacancy rate for housing accommodations is 5% or lower. For smaller cities, towns, and villages, the local legislative body can declare a housing emergency after considering publicly available data such as housing supply, vacancy rates, affordability, and homelessness rates. The bill requires property owners to provide detailed rent roll records when a municipality conducts a vacancy survey, and imposes a potential $500 civil penalty for non-compliance or submitting false information. Additionally, the bill allows smaller municipalities to regulate rent in buildings with fewer than six units and to add classes of housing accommodations to regulation, including buildings completed or substantially rehabilitated within the past 15 years. The bill aims to provide more flexible tools for local governments to address housing affordability and availability, with specific provisions to ensure transparency and compliance in determining housing emergency status.

Housing and Urban Affairs

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A4877