Relates to activities engaged in by neighborhood preservation companies; allows certain limits on annual contract amounts may be exceeded in instances where the division of housing and community renewal has determined additional funding will address a compelling public purpose.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6029
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
June 21, 2009
___________
Introduced by Sen. KRUEGER -- (at request of the Division of Housing &
Community Renewal) -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed
to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the private housing finance law, in relation to activ-
ities engaged in by neighborhood preservation companies
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 5 of section 902 of the private housing finance
2 law, as amended by chapter 668 of the laws of 1985, is amended to read
3 as follows:
4 5. "Neighborhood preservation activities" shall mean activities
5 engaged in by a neighborhood preservation company within a geograph-
6 ically defined neighborhood of a municipality, provided, however, that
7 the division may authorize a neighborhood preservation company to engage
8 in such activities in unserved areas of the municipality lying outside
9 of its initially designated neighborhood area, that are designed (a) to
10 construct, maintain, preserve, repair, renovate, upgrade, improve,
11 modernize, rehabilitate or otherwise prolong the useful life and to
12 manage and coordinate the rehabilitation of residential dwelling accom-
13 modations within such neighborhood, to restore abandoned and vacant as
14 well as occupied housing accommodations to habitable condition; to
15 demolish structurally unsound or unsafe or otherwise unsightly or
16 unhealthy structures which no longer serve or can economically be made
17 to serve a useful purpose consistent with stabilizing or improving a
18 neighborhood; to seal and maintain vacant but structurally sound struc-
19 tures which are capable of being rehabilitated at a future time and used
20 for housing purposes; to acquire, where appropriate, buildings which
21 contain housing accommodations; to facilitate the disposition of build-
22 ings containing housing accommodations to individual occupants thereof
23 or to cooperative groups whose members shall be occupants thereof; to
24 assist owners, occupants and tenants of housing accommodations to obtain
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09050-05-9
S. 6029 2
1 improvements in the physical conditions thereof and in the maintenance
2 and management thereof; and to manage housing accommodations as agents
3 for the owners thereof or administrators or receivers appointed or
4 designated pursuant to any law of the state; and (b) to accomplish simi-
5 lar purposes and meet similar needs with respect to retail and service
6 establishments within such neighborhoods when carried out in connection
7 with and incidental to a program of housing related activities.
8 § 2. Section 902 of the private housing finance law is amended by
9 adding a new subdivision 7 to read as follows:
10 7. "Compelling public purpose" shall mean: (i) the merger or consol-
11 idation of two or more neighborhood preservation companies where the
12 pre-existing service areas of all merged or consolidated companies
13 remain served following the merger or consolidation, and such action
14 results in more efficient and cost effective delivery of services; or
15 (ii) service to an area unserved by an existing neighborhood preserva-
16 tion company to promote the health, safety and welfare of a service
17 area.
18 § 3. Subdivision 4 of section 903 of the private housing finance law,
19 as amended by section 1 of part FF of chapter 57 of the laws of 2009, is
20 amended to read as follows:
21 4. Contracts entered into hereunder with neighborhood preservation
22 companies shall be limited in duration to periods of one year, but may
23 thereafter be renewed, extended or succeeded by new contracts from year
24 to year in the discretion of the commissioner; they shall be limited in
25 amount to the sum of one hundred thousand dollars in a single year,
26 provided that in any year in which the aggregate sum of three hundred
27 thousand dollars shall have been reached and all succeeding years, the
28 annual contract amount shall be subject to a limit of ninety-seven thou-
29 sand five hundred dollars per year, and further provided that the appli-
30 cable limit on the annual contract amount may be exceeded in instances
31 where the division has determined that such additional funding will
32 address a compelling public purpose; they shall define with particulari-
33 ty the neighborhood or portion thereof within which the neighborhood
34 preservation activities shall be performed; they shall specify the
35 nature of the neighborhood preservation activities which shall be
36 performed including the approximate number of buildings, residential
37 dwelling units and local retail and service establishments which shall
38 be affected; they shall locate and describe, with as much particularity
39 as is reasonably possible, the buildings with respect to which such
40 activities shall be performed during the contract term; and they shall
41 specify the number of persons, salaries or rates of compensation and a
42 description of duties of those who shall be engaged by the neighborhood
43 preservation company to perform the activities embraced by the contract
44 together with a schedule of other anticipated expenses.
45 § 4. Section 1002 of the private housing finance law is amended by
46 adding a new subdivision 7 to read as follows:
47 7. "Compelling public purpose" shall mean: (i) the merger or consol-
48 idation of two or more corporations where the pre-existing service areas
49 of all merged or consolidated corporations remain served following the
50 merger or consolidation, and such action results in more efficient and
51 cost effective delivery of services; or (ii) service to an area unserved
52 by an existing corporation preservation company to promote the health,
53 safety and welfare of a service area.
54 § 5. Subdivision 4 of section 1003 of the private housing finance law,
55 as amended by section 2 of part FF of chapter 57 of the laws of 2009, is
56 amended to read as follows:
S. 6029 3
1 4. Contracts pursuant to this section shall be for a period of no more
2 than one year, but may be renewed or extended from year to year, and
3 shall provide for payment by the division of no more than one hundred
4 thousand dollars per year, provided that in any year in which the aggre-
5 gate sum of three hundred thousand dollars shall have been reached and
6 all succeeding years, the annual contract amount shall be subject to a
7 limit of ninety-seven thousand five hundred dollars per year, and
8 further provided that the applicable limit on the annual contract amount
9 may be exceeded in instances where the division has determined that such
10 additional funding will address a compelling public purpose; they shall
11 define with particularity the region or portion thereof within which the
12 housing preservation and community renewal activities shall be
13 performed; they shall specify the nature of the housing preservation and
14 community renewal activities which shall be performed including the
15 approximate number of buildings, residential dwelling units and local
16 retail and service establishments which shall be affected; they shall
17 locate and describe, with as much particularity as is reasonably possi-
18 ble, the buildings with respect to which such activities shall be
19 performed during the contract term; and they shall specify the number of
20 persons, salaries or rates of compensation and a description of duties
21 of those who shall be engaged by the corporation to perform the activ-
22 ities embraced by the contract together with a schedule of other antic-
23 ipated expenses.
24 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.