Res 0724-2019

By Council Member Moya Whereas, According to the 2017 New York City Housing Vacancy Survey, there are 966,000 rent stabilized units and 21,751 rent control units which consist of roughly 45 percent of New York City's housing stock; and Whereas, A major capital improvement (MCI) rent increase is a permanent rent increase for a rent-stabilized or rent-controlled unit that is based on the money that was spent by the owner on improving major building systems, or other work that affects the entire building; and Whereas, The owner must submit an application to the New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) for an MCI rent increase and these applications can be challenged by tenants; and Whereas, MCI rent increases remain part of the base rent, even after the costs of the MCI have been fully recovered; and Whereas, MCI rent increases may substantially increase the monthly rent for rent stabilized units; and Whereas, Once the rent in a rent stabilized unit reaches $2,700, the unit may be deregulated upon vacancy or upon tenant incomes reaching $200,000 two years in a row; and Whereas, S.9154A, sponsored by New York State Senator Michael Gianaris, currently pending in the New York State Senate, would end the use of the MCI program and replace it with a new tax credit program that would incentivize the owner to make building-wide improvements without increasing the rent of rent stabilized or rent controlled tenants; and Whereas, S.9514A would ensure that property owners continue to have an incentive to make building-wide improvements without contributing to deregulation; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, S.9154, to end the major capital improvement program, create the guaranteed habitability protections program, create a guaranteed habitability protections tax credit and end rent increases for major capital improvements. JLC LS 8818 12/21/18 11:43am