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.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
495--B
2013-2014 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 9, 2013
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, DINOWITZ, GALEF, ABINANTI, CLARK, CRESPO,
ENGLEBRIGHT, JAFFEE, ROBERTS, TITUS, WEPRIN -- Multi-Sponsored by --
M. of A. BARRETT -- read once and referred to the Committee on Health
-- reported and referred to the Committee on Codes -- committee
discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
to said committee -- again reported from said committee with amend-
ments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
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
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05069-05-3
A. 495--B 2
1 from secondhand smoke by providing information they can weigh in select-
2 ing a new residence in a multiple dwelling building and to reduce the
3 number of conflicts between nonsmokers and smokers.
4 § 2. The public health law is amended by adding a new section 1399-y
5 to read as follows:
6 § 1399-y. Multiple dwelling smoking policy. 1. For purposes of this
7 section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
8 (a) "Multiple dwelling" means: (i) a multiple dwelling that is occu-
9 pied for permanent residence purposes of three or more families living
10 independently of each other.
11 (ii) For purposes of this paragraph, "permanent residence purposes"
12 shall consist of occupancy of a dwelling unit by the same natural person
13 or family for thirty consecutive days or more.
14 (b) "Dwelling unit" means any room or group of rooms located within a
15 dwelling and forming a single habitable unit with facilities which are
16 used or intended to be used for living or sleeping by human occupants.
17 (c) "Owner" means: (i) in the case of a building with rental dwelling
18 units, other than a condominium or a cooperative apartment corporation,
19 the owner of record; or (ii) in the case of a condominium, the board of
20 managers; or (iii) in the case of a cooperative apartment corporation,
21 the board of directors.
22 (d) "Unit owner" means: (i) in the case of a condominium, any person,
23 including a sponsor, who, alone, jointly or severally with another or
24 others has legal title to any dwelling unit in the building, with or
25 without accompanying actual possession thereof; or (ii) in the case of a
26 cooperative apartment corporation, any person, including a sponsor, who,
27 alone, jointly or severally with another or others has the legal right
28 to occupy any dwelling unit through ownership interests in a cooperative
29 apartment corporation, with or without accompanying actual possession
30 thereof.
31 (e) When referring to a dwelling unit in a multiple dwelling, "tenant"
32 means a tenant, tenant-stockholder of a cooperative apartment corpo-
33 ration, condominium unit owner, subtenant, lessee, sublessee or other
34 person entitled to the possession or to the use or occupancy of a dwell-
35 ing unit.
36 2. An owner of a multiple dwelling property is hereby required to:
37 (a) develop and implement a written smoking policy that details where
38 and when smoking is permitted or prohibited, addressing all indoor
39 locations of the property in question, including common areas and dwell-
40 ing units, and all outdoor areas, including common courtyards, rooftops
41 and balconies, patios and other outdoor areas connected to dwelling
42 units, and that applies to all tenants and any other person on the prem-
43 ises;
44 (b) distribute the smoking policy to all current tenants of the multi-
45 ple dwelling within thirty days of the effective date of this section or
46 of development of a new or amended smoking policy;
47 (c) post a copy of the smoking policy in the following common areas of
48 the multiple dwelling, if applicable: all entrances, walls adjacent to
49 elevators and mailboxes, laundry rooms and any other common rooms;
50 (d) in the case of a rental building, incorporate the smoking policy
51 into the lease for any dwelling unit, and in the case of a condominium,
52 incorporate the smoking policy into the condominium bylaws;
53 (e) in the case of a building with rental dwelling units, other than a
54 condominium or a cooperative apartment corporation, provide a copy of
55 the smoking policy to all current and prospective tenants before they
56 enter into oral leases or agreements to rent;
A. 495--B 3
1 (f) on an annual basis, provide a copy of the smoking policy to all
2 tenants;
3 (g) provide a copy of the smoking policy upon request to any person;
4 and
5 (h) make available for inspection by the enforcement officer copies of
6 the following: (i) the annual disclosure required by paragraph (f) of
7 this subdivision for the current year; and (ii) each notification of an
8 amendment made within the past year pursuant to paragraph (b) of this
9 subdivision.
10 3. Nothing in this section shall authorize an owner to adopt a policy
11 that the owner is not otherwise authorized to adopt. The smoking policy
12 and any amendments thereto shall be binding on a tenant renting or leas-
13 ing a dwelling unit only to the extent provided in such tenant's exist-
14 ing lease or sublease agreement, provided that the smoking policy and
15 any amendments thereto shall not be binding on any tenant in occupancy
16 of a rent controlled or rent stabilized dwelling unit prior to the
17 adoption of the initial smoking policy as required in this section.
18 4. (a) An owner who violates the provisions of this section shall be
19 subject to the imposition by the enforcement officer, as defined by
20 subdivision one of section thirteen hundred ninety-nine-t of this arti-
21 cle of a civil penalty. Before imposing such a civil penalty, the
22 enforcement officer shall notify the owner in writing of the reasons for
23 such imposition of a civil penalty and afford the owner an opportunity
24 to be heard in person or by counsel. Prior to the imposition of the
25 first civil penalty for an alleged violation of the provisions of this
26 section, the enforcement officer shall issue a warning to the owner,
27 provide information to the owner about the provisions of this section
28 and provide the owner thirty days to comply with the provisions of this
29 section. Failure to comply within such thirty day time period will
30 result in imposition of a civil penalty of not less than five hundred
31 dollars.
32 (b) Any person who desires to register a complaint under this article
33 may do so with the appropriate enforcement officer.
34 5. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to restrict
35 local jurisdictions from enacting more stringent laws, rules or regu-
36 lations regarding the subject matter referenced herein.
37 § 3. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a
38 law.
