Albany’s latest assault on landlords is more prog housing insanity
Among the reams of veto bait the Legislature sent to Gov. Kathy Hochul are a pair of “pro-tenant” bills that defy the state Constitution to declare open season on suing landlords, including for stuff they didn’t do.
The measures 1) lower the bar for “proving” a tenant was fraudulently overcharged on rent, and 2) vastly expand the “lookback period” — i.e. how far back in history the litigant can go.
Many of these suits center on confusion the state itself created, with a massive rewrite on rules surrounding the J-51 tax abatement.
The Legislature now wants a presumption of landlords’ intent to defraud if they got any of the details wrong.
Oh, and both bills are naked efforts to end-run rulings from the state’s top court that tossed lawsuits in this category for trying to retroactively redefine fraud and/or violate statutes of limitations.
In short, this isn’t about protecting tenants but rewarding lawyers playing “litigation lotto.”
This is what lawmakers focused on instead of passing any meaningful legislation to address the state and city’s growing housing crises.
If Hochul signs this garbage into law, she’ll be rewarding the trial lawyers and the legislators who flipped off her housing agenda — and greenlighting more left-wingers’ efforts to subvert the Constitution whenever it gets in the way of their schemes.
New York is already groaning plenty under the weight of one-party rule; the last thing it needs is Hochul giving up on reining in the crazies.
