STATE OF NEW YORK
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2555--A
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 28, 2019
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Introduced by Sen. STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Cities -- reported favora-
bly from said committee and committed to the Committee on Finance --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in
relation to providing certain elderly individuals with an exemption
from increases in water rates
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The administrative code of the city of New York is amended
2 by adding a new section 24-340 to read as follows:
3 § 24-340 Senior citizen water rate freeze. a. For purposes of this
4 section the following terms shall have the following meanings:
5 (1) "Qualified homeowner" means a person who: (a) is at least sixty-
6 five years of age; (b) owns real property; and (c) has had a total
7 household income of less than fifty thousand dollars for two consecutive
8 income tax years beginning in two thousand seventeen, as verified by the
9 New York city department of finance;
10 (2) "Real property" means a one, two, three, or four family home owned
11 by a qualified homeowner that serves as the primary residence of such
12 homeowner;
13 (3) "Water rate increase" means an increase in water rates that takes
14 effect subsequent to a qualified homeowner's eligibility under this
15 section.
16 b. Real property owned by a qualified homeowner shall be exempt from
17 any charges due to a water rate increase.
18 c. The exemption provided by this section may be suspended for no more
19 than one calendar year by the commissioner of the department of environ-
20 mental protection of the city of New York (1) in the event of a drought,
21 or (2) in the event of a disaster or catastrophe other than drought,
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD02931-03-9
S. 2555--A 2
1 which causes or may cause an actual and immediate shortage of available
2 and usable water.
3 d. Eligibility for the exemption provided by this section shall not
4 preclude a qualified homeowner's eligibility for any other exemption or
5 credit to which they are entitled.
6 § 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.
