NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A1859A
SPONSOR: Magnarelli (MS)
 
TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the real property actions and
proceedings law, in relation to authorizing municipalities to compel
mortgagees either to complete a mortgage foreclosure proceeding pursuant
to article 13 of the real property actions and proceedings law or to
issue a certificate of discharge of the mortgage for any property which
has been certified abandoned pursuant to section 1971 of the real prop-
erty actions and proceedings law
 
PURPOSE:
Permits a municipality to compel a mortgagee to either complete a mort-
gage foreclosure proceeding or to issue a certificate of discharge of
the mortgage for any property which has been certified abandoned pursu-
ant to real property actions and proceedings law section 1971. Thousands
of abandoned properties are blighting communities throughout the State
of New York. Complicating the efforts of local government officials to
deal with these properties that depress surrounding property values and
put on a strain on municipal resources are zombie properties. Zombie
properties sit in legal foreclosure limbo for years, frequently aban-
doned by the property owners, generally deteriorating sometimes to the
point that the buildings must be demolished while the mortgagee fails to
complete the foreclosure process.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the Act sets forth the bill's short title: "Zombie Property
Remediation Act of 2019".
Section 2 adds a new section 1392 of the real property actions and
proceedings law which authorizes local governments to commence judicial
proceedings in courts of competent jurisdiction to compel mortgagees to
either complete mortgage foreclosure actions or to issue certificates of
discharge for the mortgage for properties that have been certified as
abandoned pursuant to real property actions and proceedings law section
1971.
Section 3 establishes the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
By enacting this legislation, municipalities will be able to better
address the "zombie properties" that are plaguing communities across the
state.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2017-2018: A.1563-A, 2016: A.9655-A
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State. This legislation should financially benefit munici-
palities in allowing them to reclaim and redevelop "zombie properties"
in order to return them to the property tax rolls.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
1859--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 17, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. MAGNARELLI, FAHY, BUCHWALD, M. G. MILLER, JAFFEE,
GUNTHER, OTIS, STECK, ORTIZ, JOYNER, BLAKE, JEAN-PIERRE, GALEF, WALK-
ER, HYNDMAN -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, ENGLEBRIGHT,
THIELE -- read once and referred to the Committee on Judiciary --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the real property actions and proceedings law, in
relation to authorizing municipalities to compel mortgagees either to
complete a mortgage foreclosure proceeding pursuant to article 13 of
the real property actions and proceedings law or to issue a certif-
icate of discharge of the mortgage for any property which has been
certified abandoned pursuant to section 1971 of the real property
actions and proceedings law
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may be cited as
2 the "zombie property remediation act of 2019".
3 § 2. The real property actions and proceedings law is amended by
4 adding a new section 1392 to read as follows:
5 § 1392. Foreclosure actions involving abandoned properties. If a
6 property has been certified abandoned pursuant to section nineteen
7 hundred seventy-one of this chapter, or deemed vacant and abandoned
8 pursuant to section thirteen hundred nine of this article, the city,
9 village, or town in which the property is located may commence a
10 proceeding in a court of competent jurisdiction in the county in which
11 the property is located to compel any or all mortgagees to: (a) if the
12 note is in default, the mortgagee shall commence a foreclosure procedure
13 within three months and shall meet all deadlines to ensure the case is
14 ready to be moved to judgment within a reasonable time period but not to
15 exceed one year; (b) if a foreclosure has already been commenced, file
16 the necessary motions and within three months paperwork to move the case
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01898-07-9
A. 1859--A 2
1 to judgment foreclosure within three months; or (c) issue a certificate
2 of discharge of the mortgage within three months and file a satisfaction
3 of the mortgage with the appropriate local office.
4 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.