Expands definition of eligible senior citizen and disabled person with respect to condominium and cooperative conversion

• Democratic4

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why Cordell Cleare says this is needed

In order to protect vulnerable senior citizens and disabled persons who do not purchase shares in an eviction-plan cooperative conversion, the Legislature enacted General Business Law 352-e(2-a), 352-eee and 352-eeee, which grant such tenants permanent protection from eviction. These provisions apply only in New York City, in some towns and cities in Westchester, Rockland and Nassau Counties, and those upstate communi- ties where the governing body votes to adopt such coverage. Unfortunately, disabled persons or senior citizens who lawfully live with the tenant, and who may care or be cared for by the tenant, are not covered by the exemption, although they are unlikely to be able to purchase shares and also face special burdens in finding alternative housing. In BELMONT EAST CO. V. ABRAMS, 473 NYS2:i 676 (Sup. Ct. N:Y. Co. 1984), the court held that a tenant who lived with her blind 76-year old mother was not entitled to protection from eviction because the named tenant was not disabled. In accordance with that decision, the Attorney General was recently required to deny a tenant's election not to purchase where the tenant's severely disabled daughter resided with her, because the daughter was not the tenant of record. By expanding the definitions of "elderly" and "disabled" persons to include residents of the apartment who lawfully reside with the named tenant, this bill simply extends existing law to those most deserving of protection from eviction. This bill also changes the definition of disabled. Rather than requiring that the disabled person be unable to work, under this bill the term "disabled" would include anyone whose disability substantially limits one or more of his or her major life activities.This change reflects other statutory provisions in both New York and Federal Law that recog- nize that while some disabled persons can work, they still may be so impaired that they are disabled and entitled to additional protections. See, e.g., the New York Human Rights Law, (Exec. Law 292), the Rehabili- tation Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. section 706, and the Fair Housing Amend- ments Act of 1988, (P.L. 100-430).

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.