A00035 Summary:

BILL NOA00035
 
SAME ASNo Same As
 
SPONSORPaulin
 
COSPNSRDinowitz, Galef, Abinanti, Crespo, Englebright, Jaffee, Titus, Weprin, Perry
 
MLTSPNSRBarrett
 
Add S1399-y, Pub Health L
 
Requires owners of multiple dwelling properties to develop, implement and distribute smoking policies to current and prospective tenants; requires a posted copy of the smoking policy; requires such policy be incorporated into all written and oral leases and contracts for sale; allows the enforcement officer the power to impose a civil penalty for violations.
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A00035 Actions:

BILL NOA00035
 
01/07/2015referred to health
01/06/2016referred to health
04/05/2016reported referred to codes
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A00035 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A35
 
SPONSOR: Paulin (MS)
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring owners of multiple dwelling properties to develop, implement and distribute smoking policies   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: To reduce secondhand smoke exposure to nonsmokers living in apartments, cooperative apartment corporations and condominiums. This act encourages owners of multiple dwelling properties to develop, implement and distribute smoking policies to current and prospective tenants.   SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1 provides the legislative findings. Section 2 amends public health law by adding a new section 1399-y, which provides that owners of multiple dwellings are required to develop and implement a written smoking policy that details where and when smoking is permitted or prohibited on the premises, including indoor locations, common areas, outside areas around entrances, doorways and air intake units. The smoking policy must be distributed to current tenants within 30 days of the effective date of this act or after the policy has been amended. The smoking policy must be posted in the common areas of the building, incorporated into leases and condominium bylaws and distrib- uted to current and prospective tenants. A copy of the smoking policy must be provided to all tenants on an annual basis, upon request to any person and made available for inspection by the enforcement officer. Definitions are also included. Nothing in this section shall authorize an owner to adopt a policy that the owner is not otherwise authorized to adopt. For tenants of rent- controlled or rent-stabilized buildings, the smoking policy will only apply to the extent provided in the existing lease or sublease agree- ment. Owners who violate the provisions of this section are subject to a civil penalty. The enforcement officer of this act is defined by subdivision one of section 1399-t of the public health law. The enforcement officer shall issue a warning to an owner who violates the provisions of this section and allow the owner 30 days to comply if it is the first offense. Before the enforcement officer imposes a civil penalty, the owner shall be notified by writing of the reasons. Failure to comply within the timeframe will result in imposition of a civil penalty of not less than five hundred dollars. Any person may register a complaint under this article with the appropriate enforcement officer. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to restrict local jurisdictions from enacting more stringent laws, rules or regulations. Section 3 provides the effective date.   JUSTIFICATION: Secondhand smoke is often involuntarily inhaled by nonsmokers. Exposure to secondhand smoke increases a person's risk of health hazards, such as lung cancer, asthma and heart disease. The only way to completely protect a nonsmoker is to prevent exposure to secondhand smoke. In buildings with multifamily units, smoke can spread between units through air ducts, floor cracks, wall cracks and elevator shafts. This bill will create a framework for owners of apartment buildings, cooperative apartment corporations and condominiums to create, implement and distribute a smoking policy for tenants. Building owners are permit- ted, but are not required, to restrict smoking within their properties. This bill requires that building owners create and distribute a written document that details when and where smoking is or is not permitted, thereby providing information to current and prospective tenants to make informed decisions. This bill will also help reduce the number of conflicts between nonsmokers and smokers and between owner(s) and tenants because the smoking policy will be incorporated into leases and contracts of sale.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: A.495-B, 2013 and 2014 referred to codes. Same as S.5012-A, 2013 and 2014 referred to health. A. 10498-A of 2012 referred to codes.   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None to the state.   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become a law.
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A00035 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                           35
 
                               2015-2016 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                       (Prefiled)
 
                                     January 7, 2015
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, DINOWITZ, GALEF, ABINANTI, CLARK, CRESPO,
          ENGLEBRIGHT,  JAFFEE, ROBERTS, TITUS, WEPRIN, PERRY -- Multi-Sponsored
          by -- M. of A. BARRETT -- read once and referred to the  Committee  on
          Health
 
        AN  ACT  to amend the public health law, in relation to requiring owners
          of multiple dwelling properties to develop, implement  and  distribute
          smoking policies
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. Legislative findings.   Secondhand smoke is  produced  from
     2  the  lighted end of tobacco products and from smoke exhaled from a smok-
     3  er. Secondhand smoke is a known carcinogen and exposure to it is  linked
     4  to  increased  risk  of  cancer,  respiratory  complications  and  heart
     5  disease. Any level of exposure to secondhand smoke is harmful  to  chil-
     6  dren  and  adults;  it  is estimated that 3,400 nonsmoking adults die of
     7  lung cancer and up to one million asthmatic children have worsened asth-
     8  ma and asthma-related problems each year  in  the  United  States  as  a
     9  result  of inhaling secondhand smoke.  Private owners and public housing
    10  authorities may restrict smoking in or on their properties. In buildings
    11  with multifamily units, smoke  can  spread  between  units  through  air
    12  ducts,  cracks  and  elevator shafts and involuntarily expose nonsmoking
    13  tenants. Secondhand smoke often cannot be controlled  using  ventilation
    14  systems,  air  cleaning,  or  separating  non-smokers  from smokers. The
    15  intent of this legislation is to require  owners  of  multiple  dwelling
    16  properties  to  develop, incorporate into leases and condominium bylaws,
    17  and to distribute smoking policies to current and  prospective  tenants.
    18  The  bill  acts to help nonsmokers protect themselves and their families
    19  from secondhand smoke by providing information they can weigh in select-
    20  ing a new residence in a multiple dwelling building and  to  reduce  the
    21  number of conflicts between nonsmokers and smokers.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD00093-01-5

        A. 35                               2
 
     1    §  2.  The public health law is amended by adding a new section 1399-y
     2  to read as follows:
     3    §  1399-y.   Multiple dwelling smoking policy. 1. For purposes of this
     4  section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
     5    (a) "Multiple dwelling" means: (i) a multiple dwelling that  is  occu-
     6  pied  for  permanent residence purposes of three or more families living
     7  independently of each other.
     8    (ii) For purposes of this paragraph,  "permanent  residence  purposes"
     9  shall consist of occupancy of a dwelling unit by the same natural person
    10  or family for thirty consecutive days or more.
    11    (b)  "Dwelling unit" means any room or group of rooms located within a
    12  dwelling and forming a single habitable unit with facilities  which  are
    13  used or intended to be used for living or sleeping by human occupants.
    14    (c) "Owner" means:  (i) in the case of a building with rental dwelling
    15  units,  other than a condominium or a cooperative apartment corporation,
    16  the owner of record; or (ii) in the case of a condominium, the board  of
    17  managers;  or  (iii) in the case of a cooperative apartment corporation,
    18  the board of directors.
    19    (d) "Unit owner" means: (i) in the case of a condominium, any  person,
    20  including  a  sponsor,  who, alone, jointly or severally with another or
    21  others has legal title to any dwelling unit in  the  building,  with  or
    22  without accompanying actual possession thereof; or (ii) in the case of a
    23  cooperative apartment corporation, any person, including a sponsor, who,
    24  alone,  jointly  or severally with another or others has the legal right
    25  to occupy any dwelling unit through ownership interests in a cooperative
    26  apartment corporation, with or without  accompanying  actual  possession
    27  thereof.
    28    (e) When referring to a dwelling unit in a multiple dwelling, "tenant"
    29  means  a  tenant,  tenant-stockholder  of a cooperative apartment corpo-
    30  ration, condominium unit owner, subtenant, lessee,  sublessee  or  other
    31  person entitled to the possession or to the use or occupancy of a dwell-
    32  ing unit.
    33    2. An owner of a multiple dwelling property is hereby required to:
    34    (a)  develop and implement a written smoking policy that details where
    35  and when smoking is  permitted  or  prohibited,  addressing  all  indoor
    36  locations of the property in question, including common areas and dwell-
    37  ing  units, and all outdoor areas, including common courtyards, rooftops
    38  and balconies, patios and other  outdoor  areas  connected  to  dwelling
    39  units, and that applies to all tenants and any other person on the prem-
    40  ises;
    41    (b) distribute the smoking policy to all current tenants of the multi-
    42  ple dwelling within thirty days of the effective date of this section or
    43  of development of a new or amended smoking policy;
    44    (c) post a copy of the smoking policy in the following common areas of
    45  the  multiple  dwelling, if applicable: all entrances, walls adjacent to
    46  elevators and mailboxes, laundry rooms and any other common rooms;
    47    (d) in the case of a rental building, incorporate the  smoking  policy
    48  into  the lease for any dwelling unit, and in the case of a condominium,
    49  incorporate the smoking policy into the condominium bylaws;
    50    (e) in the case of a building with rental dwelling units, other than a
    51  condominium or a cooperative apartment corporation, provide  a  copy  of
    52  the  smoking  policy  to all current and prospective tenants before they
    53  enter into oral leases or agreements to rent;
    54    (f) on an annual basis, provide a copy of the smoking  policy  to  all
    55  tenants;

        A. 35                               3
 
     1    (g)  provide  a copy of the smoking policy upon request to any person;
     2  and
     3    (h) make available for inspection by the enforcement officer copies of
     4  the  following:  (i)  the annual disclosure required by paragraph (f) of
     5  this subdivision for the current year; and (ii) each notification of  an
     6  amendment  made  within  the past year pursuant to paragraph (b) of this
     7  subdivision.
     8    3.  Nothing in this section shall authorize an owner to adopt a policy
     9  that the owner is not otherwise authorized to adopt.  The smoking policy
    10  and any amendments thereto shall be binding on a tenant renting or leas-
    11  ing a dwelling unit only to the extent provided in such tenant's  exist-
    12  ing  lease  or  sublease agreement, provided that the smoking policy and
    13  any amendments thereto shall not be binding on any tenant  in  occupancy
    14  of  a  rent  controlled  or  rent  stabilized dwelling unit prior to the
    15  adoption of the initial smoking policy as required in this section.
    16    4. (a) An owner who violates the provisions of this section  shall  be
    17  subject  to  the  imposition  by  the enforcement officer, as defined by
    18  subdivision one of section thirteen hundred ninety-nine-t of this  arti-
    19  cle  of  a  civil  penalty.  Before  imposing  such a civil penalty, the
    20  enforcement officer shall notify the owner in writing of the reasons for
    21  such imposition of a civil penalty and afford the owner  an  opportunity
    22  to  be  heard  in  person  or by counsel. Prior to the imposition of the
    23  first civil penalty for an alleged violation of the provisions  of  this
    24  section,  the  enforcement  officer  shall issue a warning to the owner,
    25  provide information to the owner about the provisions  of  this  section
    26  and  provide the owner thirty days to comply with the provisions of this
    27  section.  Failure to comply within such  thirty  day  time  period  will
    28  result  in  imposition  of a civil penalty of not less than five hundred
    29  dollars.
    30    (b) Any person who desires to register a complaint under this  article
    31  may do so with the appropriate enforcement officer.
    32    5.  The  provisions of this section shall not be construed to restrict
    33  local jurisdictions from enacting more stringent laws,  rules  or  regu-
    34  lations regarding the subject matter referenced herein.
    35    §  3. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
    36  law.
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