Provides that no court shall issue a warrant of eviction or judgment of possession against a residential tenant that has suffered a financial hardship for the non-payment of rent that accrues or becomes due during the COVID-19 covered period.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A10290b
SPONSOR: Dinowitz TITLE OF BILL:
An act in relation to prohibiting the eviction of residential tenants
who have suffered financial hardship during the COVID-19 covered period
PURPOSE OF BILL:
The purpose of this bill is to help keep residential tenants in their
homes following the COVID19 pandemic by allowing only money judgments,
and not evictions, for unpaid rent that comes due during the COVID.-19
state disaster emergency
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill defines the COVID-19 covered period.
Section 2 of the bill prohibits a court from issuing a warrant of
eviction or judgment of possession against a residential tenant or other
lawful occupant, that has suffered a financial hardship during the COVID
19 covered period, for nonpayment of rent that accrues or becomes due
during the COVID 19 covered period. The tenant may raise financial hard-
ship as a defense in a summary proceeding. The bill also lists some of
the factors the court shall consider when determining if a financial
hardship does exist but does not limit the court to only those factors.
The bill does not prohibit a court from ordering a judgment for the rent
due and owing to a successful petitioner under article 7 of the real
property actions and procedure law.
Section 3 of the bill is the effective date
JUSTIFICATION:
ON MARCH 7, 2020, GOVERNOR CUOMO ISSUED EXECUTIVE ORDER 202, DECLARING A
STATEWIDE DISASTER EMERGENCY DUE TO THE IMPENDING THREAT OF THE COVID-19
GLOBAL PANDEMIC. AS COVID-19 HAS SPREAD THROUGHOUT NEW YORK, GOVERNOR
CUOMO HAS ISSUED A SERIES OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS TO SUSPEND OR MODIFY
EXISTING LAW:S AS NECESSARY TO SLOW THE SPREAD OF THE VIRUS. EXECUTIVE
ORDER 202.8, ISSUED ON MARCH 20, 2020, INCLUDED .A DIRECTIVE THAT THERE
SHALL BE NO ENFORCEMENT OF AN EVICTION FOR A PERIOD OF NINETY DAYS.
THE SUBSEQUENT EXECUTIVE ORDER 202.28, ISSUED ON MAY 7, 2020, INCLUDED A
DIRECTIVE THAT THERE SHALL BE NO INITIATION OF A PROCEEDING OR ENFORCE-
MENT OF AN EVICTION BY SOMEONE THAT IS ELIGIBLE FOR UNEMPLOYMENT INSUR-
ANCE OR BENEFITS UNDER STATE OR FEDERAL LAW OR OTHERWISE FACING FINAN-
CIAL HARDSHIP DUE TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC FOR A PERIOD OF SIXTY DAY
BEGINNING ON JUNE 20, 2020.
THE EVICTION MORATORIA PROVIDED IN EOS 202.8 AND 202.28 ARE IMPORTANT
MEASURES TO HELP KEEP NEW YORKERS SECURE IN THEIR HOMES AT A TIME WHEN
THE LEADING PUBLIC HEALTH GUIDANCE IN THE FIGHT AGAINST COVID-19 URGES
SOCIAL DISTANCING AND SELF-ISOLATION. AT THE SAME TIME, NEW YORK IS
EXPERIENCING AN UNPRECEDENTED SPIKE IN UNEMPLOYMENT CLAIMS AS THE NY
STATE ON PAUSE ORDER REQUIRES NON-ESSENTIAL BUSINESSES TO TEMPORARILY
SHUTTER, AND OTHER BUSINESSES HAVE HAD TO CLOSE PERMANENTLY, LAY OFF
EMPLOYEES, OR DRAMATICALLY SCALE BACK AVAILABLE WORK HOURS DUE TO THE
FISCAL IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 RESPONSE.
MANY TENANTS MAY FIND THEMSELVES FACING SEVERAL MONTHS' WORTH OF ACCRUED
UNPAID RENT AT THE END OF THE EVICTION MORATORIA. SUCH A SCENARIO WOULD
PUT TENANTS AT HIGH RISK OF BEING EVICTED, AT A TIME WHEN IT IS UNLIKELY
THAT THE ECONOMY AND JOB MARKET WILL HAVE RECOVERED FROM THE IMPACT OF
COVID-19.
THIS LEGISLATION WOULD DISALLOW LANDLORDS FROM SEEKING OR OBTAINING
POSSESSORY JUDGMENTS (I.E. EVICTIONS) FOR UNPAID RENT THAT WAS during
the COVID-19 period. LANDLORDS WOULD STILL BE ABLE TO OBTAIN MONEY JUDG-
MENTS FOR UNPAID RENT THAT ACCRUED DURING THAT TIME PERIOD, BUT TENANTS
WOULD REMAIN STABLY LOCATED IN THE MEANTIME.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
This is a new bill
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10290--B
IN ASSEMBLY
April 8, 2020
___________
Introduced by M. of A. DINOWITZ, SEAWRIGHT, EPSTEIN, LENTOL, SIMOTAS,
JAFFEE, GOTTFRIED, ORTIZ, RAMOS, SIMON -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Judiciary -- committee discharged, bill amended,
ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee --
again reported from said committee with amendments, ordered reprinted
as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT in relation to prohibiting the eviction of residential tenants
who have suffered financial hardship during the COVID-19 covered peri-
od
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. For the purposes of this act, "COVID-19 covered period"
2 means March 7, 2020 until the date on which none of the provisions that
3 closed or otherwise restricted public or private businesses or places of
4 public accommodation, or required postponement or cancellation of all
5 non-essential gatherings of individuals of any size for any reason in
6 Executive Orders 202.3, 202.4, 202.5, 202.6, 202.7, 202.8, 202.10,
7 202.11, 202.13 or 202.14, as extended by Executive Orders 202.28 and
8 202.31 and as further extended by any future Executive Order, issued in
9 response to the COVID-19 pandemic continue to apply in the county of the
10 tenant's or lawful occupant's residence.
11 § 2. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary:
12 1. No court shall issue a warrant of eviction or judgment of
13 possession against a residential tenant or other lawful occupant that
14 has suffered a financial hardship during the COVID-19 covered period for
15 the non-payment of rent that accrues or becomes due during the COVID-19
16 covered period.
17 2. (a) A tenant or lawful occupant may raise financial hardship during
18 the COVID-19 covered period as a defense in a summary proceeding under
19 article 7 of the real property actions and proceedings law.
20 (b) In determining whether a tenant or lawful occupant suffered a
21 financial hardship during the COVID-19 covered period, the court shall
22 consider, among other relevant factors:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16113-12-0
A. 10290--B 2
1 (i) the tenant's or lawful occupant's income prior to the COVID-19
2 covered period;
3 (ii) the tenant's or lawful occupant's income during the COVID-19
4 covered period;
5 (iii) the tenant's or lawful occupant's liquid assets; and
6 (iv) the tenant's or lawful occupant's eligibility for and receipt of
7 cash assistance, supplemental nutrition assistance program, supplemental
8 security income, the New York State disability program, the home energy
9 assistance program, or unemployment insurance or benefits under state or
10 federal law.
11 3. This act shall not prohibit any court from awarding a judgment for
12 the rent due and owing to a successful petitioner in a summary proceed-
13 ing under article 7 of the real property actions and proceedings law.
14 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
