S00198 Summary:

BILL NOS00198A
 
SAME ASNo Same As
 
SPONSORSQUADRON
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Add Art 12-D §448, RP L
 
Requires residential real property managers or any firm employing a property manager, contracting with a property manager or contracting to provide a property manager to file a registration statement with the secretary of state and to be certified from an approved certifying organization.
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S00198 Actions:

BILL NOS00198A
 
01/07/2015REFERRED TO JUDICIARY
01/06/2016REFERRED TO JUDICIARY
04/29/2016AMEND AND RECOMMIT TO JUDICIARY
04/29/2016PRINT NUMBER 198A
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S00198 Committee Votes:

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S00198 Floor Votes:

There are no votes for this bill in this legislative session.
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S00198 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         198--A
 
                               2015-2016 Regular Sessions
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                       (Prefiled)
 
                                     January 7, 2015
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by Sen. SQUADRON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary  --  recommitted
          to the Committee on Judiciary in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8
          --  committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
          and recommitted to said committee
 
        AN ACT to amend the real property law, in relation to providing  certif-
          ication and registration requirements for property managers of cooper-
          atives and condominiums
 
          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section 1. The real property law is amended by adding  a  new  article
     2  12-D to read as follows:
     3                                 ARTICLE 12-D
     4                        RESIDENTIAL REALTY MANAGEMENT
     5  Section 448. Residential realty management.
     6    §  448.  Residential  realty  management.  1. As used in this article,
     7  unless the context otherwise requires:
     8    (a) "Certification" shall mean a designation by the secretary of state
     9  that an individual has met the predetermined  qualifications  which  are
    10  deemed  to  constitute  a  level  of proficiency adequate to perform the
    11  day-to-day management and operation of real property used  for  residen-
    12  tial purposes and owned as a cooperative or condominium.
    13    (b) "Property manager" shall mean any person who, in return for remun-
    14  eration or compensation of any kind, performs residential realty manage-
    15  ment  for real property owned as a condominium or cooperative.  Property
    16  manager shall not mean or include:
    17    (1) a shareholder or owner of the cooperative or condominium acting as
    18  a property manager without remuneration or compensation of any kind; or
    19    (2) any developer or sponsor of a cooperative  or  condominium  during
    20  the  period that the developer or sponsor retains control of the cooper-
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD01234-02-6

        S. 198--A                           2
 
     1  ative or condominium; provided that the developer or sponsor has in  its
     2  employ or has retained a property manager certified under this article.
     3    (c) "Residential realty management" shall mean either:
     4    (1)  the  performance  of  principal managerial responsibilities for a
     5  cooperative or condominium; and the authority for  policy  or  financial
     6  decision  making  for  any  one  of the following services: maintenance,
     7  security, energy conservation, code compliance, labor relations,  fiscal
     8  budgetary  responsibilities,  tenant  relations, governmental relations,
     9  janitorial services or any other provided service; or
    10    (2) the responsibility for the collection and  expenditure  of  monies
    11  for  and on behalf of such cooperative or condominium, its owners and/or
    12  managing board, under whatever name known.
    13    2. No person shall perform residential realty management  unless  such
    14  person  shall  have filed a property manager registration statement with
    15  the secretary of state as required by this section and has  been  issued
    16  by  the  secretary of state a certificate demonstrating that such regis-
    17  trant has satisfied all the requirements for certification as a property
    18  manager as set forth by this article.
    19    No cooperative or condominium board shall employ any  person  for  the
    20  purpose  of  performing residential realty management unless such person
    21  has been certified by the office of the secretary of  state.  Nor  shall
    22  the  cooperative  or  condominium  board  employ  any firm, partnership,
    23  corporation or other entity unless its property managers  are  certified
    24  by the office of the secretary of state.
    25    3.  The  secretary of state shall promulgate the form of the registra-
    26  tion statement to be known as the "property manager registration  state-
    27  ment."  The  property manager registration statement form shall require,
    28  but need not be limited to, the following information:
    29    (a) the name and address of the  person  filing  the  registration  to
    30  obtain certification pursuant to this article;
    31    (b)  the name and address of the corporation, firm, association, part-
    32  nership or other entity that currently employs the applicant;
    33    (c) the name and address of  all  partners,  officers,  directors  and
    34  principals  of such corporation, firm, association, partnership or other
    35  entity that currently employs the applicant;
    36    (d) a statement indicating whether the applicant has:
    37    (1) been convicted of any crime involving fraud or dishonesty  or  had
    38  any civil judgments relating to work as a real property manager;
    39    (2)  ever  had a real estate broker's license, and if so, whether such
    40  license was ever revoked or suspended;
    41    (3) at any time in the past been issued a  certification  pursuant  to
    42  this  section, and if so, whether such certification was ever revoked or
    43  suspended;
    44    (e) the length of time that the applicant has been engaged in residen-
    45  tial realty management where applicable and a list of each building  for
    46  which the registrant has performed residential realty management and the
    47  dates and addresses thereof;
    48    (f)  the  name  and  address of the approved property manager training
    49  program that the applicant has satisfactorily completed and the date  of
    50  such completion, if required; and
    51    (g) a sworn statement by the property manager that the information set
    52  forth in the statement is current and accurate.
    53    4.  Every  certification  issued  pursuant  to  this  section shall be
    54  renewed as set forth by the secretary of state but in no event shall the
    55  term of such certification exceed two  years.  The  secretary  of  state

        S. 198--A                           3
 
     1  shall  collect  a  fee  of fifty dollars for each certification and each
     2  renewal pursuant to this section.
     3    5.  A  certified  property  manager  shall give the secretary of state
     4  written notification within forty-five days of any  material  change  of
     5  circumstances  which varies from the information contained in his or her
     6  sworn property manager registration statement previously provided to the
     7  secretary of state including, but not limited to, changes in employment,
     8  retirement, resignation or termination.
     9    6. The secretary of state, upon the receipt and review of a  satisfac-
    10  torily  completed  property  manager registration statement, may issue a
    11  certification to any applicant who has:
    12    (a) (1) successfully completed a   property manager  training  program
    13  approved by the secretary of state which provides the applicant with the
    14  requisite  skills,  knowledge and training necessary to perform residen-
    15  tial realty management as defined by paragraph (c) of subdivision one of
    16  this section, or (2) been gainfully employed as a  property  manager  as
    17  defined in paragraph (b) of subdivision one of this section for the five
    18  years immediately preceding enactment of this section; and
    19    (b)  has  met any other criteria established by the secretary of state
    20  in order to be eligible to receive certification as a property  manager;
    21  or
    22    (c)  has  demonstrated,  in  the  case of a certified property manager
    23  applying for recertification, the competency and integrity  to  continue
    24  to perform the duties of a property manager and has not had such certif-
    25  ication revoked.
    26    The  secretary  of  state  may  refuse   to issue a certificate to any
    27  person who he or she finds, after notice and hearing, has been convicted
    28  of any crime involving fraud or dishonesty, or where refusal will in his
    29  or her judgment, best promote the interests of the people of this state.
    30    7. The secretary of state shall establish procedures and criteria, and
    31  shall promulgate regulations, for: (a) approving or disapproving  appli-
    32  cations  for  certifications  to  act as a property manager; and (b) the
    33  approval of and the periodic review of certification training  programs.
    34  Any  complaint  in  connection  with  an action taken or inaction by the
    35  secretary of state pursuant to this article shall be within the  purview
    36  of  the  secretary of state.  In establishing the procedures required by
    37  this subdivision, the secretary of state may provide that any  organiza-
    38  tion  which has been designated by the federal department of housing and
    39  urban development as an approved certification training program may  act
    40  as such pursuant to this article.
    41    8.  The  secretary  of  state  may  refuse  to renew, or may revoke or
    42  suspend the certification of any property manager, if, after notice  and
    43  hearing, he or she finds that such property manager has failed to comply
    44  with  any of the requirements imposed by the provisions herein and if in
    45  his or her judgment such suspension or revocation is  reasonably  neces-
    46  sary to protect the interests of the people of this state. The secretary
    47  of state may in his or her discretion reinstate such certification where
    48  such grounds for suspension or revocation no longer exists.
    49    9.  The  provisions  of  this  section shall not apply to any property
    50  manager or any firm, association, partnership, entity and any  affiliate
    51  of  such  firm,  association, partnership or entity employing a property
    52  manager, contracting with a property manager or contracting to provide a
    53  property manager, if all the condominiums or cooperatives for which such
    54  property manager, firm, association, partnership, entity and any  affil-
    55  iate  of such firm, association, partnership or entity performs services
    56  comprises less than twenty-five residential units.

        S. 198--A                           4
 
     1    10. Any property manager or any firm, association, partnership, corpo-
     2  ration or other entity, other than a cooperative or  condominium  board,
     3  employing  a  property  manager,  contracting with a property manager or
     4  contracting to provide a property manager that fails to comply with  the
     5  requirements  of this article shall be subject to a civil penalty not to
     6  exceed one thousand dollars for a first  violation,  two  thousand  five
     7  hundred  dollars for a second violation, and five thousand dollars for a
     8  third or subsequent violation.
     9    Any cooperative or condominium board which knowingly hires an unregis-
    10  tered property manager may be liable for a civil penalty not  to  exceed
    11  one thousand dollars.
    12    11.  All  monies collected while performing residential realty manage-
    13  ment shall be segregated and separate accounts shall be  maintained  for
    14  each  condominium  or  cooperative  being managed. Any violation of this
    15  provision shall constitute a misdemeanor punishable by  a  fine  not  to
    16  exceed five thousand dollars.
    17    12.  When  a  property  manager  ceases  to perform residential realty
    18  management services for  a  cooperative  or  condominium,  the  property
    19  manager  within  ten  business  days  shall be required to turn over all
    20  building records and all funds, which have been placed into his  or  her
    21  care  or  are in his or her possession, to the board of directors of the
    22  cooperative or board of managers of the condominium or  their  designee.
    23  Nevertheless,  such  funds  and/or records requiring bank reconciliation
    24  shall be turned over within forty-five days of termination.
    25    13.  The  attorney  general  shall  have  the  power  to  enforce  the
    26  provisions of this article.
    27    §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
    28  have become a law, except that any rules and regulations  necessary  for
    29  the  timely  implementation  of  this act on its effective date shall be
    30  promulgated on or before such date; provided, however, that  subdivision
    31  2  of  section  448 of the real property law, as added by section one of
    32  this act, shall take effect on the first of January next succeeding  the
    33  date upon which it shall have become a law.
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