Bill Summary – S.9914 (2025-2026 Session, New York)
Title: Relates to requiring property owners to dedicate certain residential units to rent regulated status following demolition and new construction or substantial renovation
Introduced by: Senator Krueger (with co-sponsors Sepúlveda, Jackson, Krueger)
Date Introduced: April 14, 2026
Committee: Housing, Construction and Community Development
Status: Referred to committee (as of introduction)
Purpose and intent
- The bill would require property owners to dedicate an equal number of housing units, after demolitions, new construction, or substantial renovations, to the same protected rent-regulated status (rent-controlled or rent-stabilized) that existed prior to demolition/renovation.
- This applies when such demolition/renovation renders all or a portion of a building’s units uninhabitable or vacated in residential buildings subject to New York’s rent regulation framework (Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974, Emergency Housing Rent Control Law, local EHPAct jurisdictions, and New York City rent regulation provisions).
Key provisions and changes
1) New Section added to NYC Administrative Code (Section 26-512, subdivision h)
- Trigger: If all or a portion of rent-regulated units are rendered uninhabitable or vacated due to demolition and new construction or substantial renovation by the owner.
- Obligation: Upon completion of the new construction or renovation, the owner must dedicate an equal number of new or rehabilitated units to the same protected status as the vacated units, with sizes equivalent to those vacated.
- Priority right: The tenant(s) who were in possession immediately prior to demolition/renovation shall have the right of first refusal for the occupation of these newly dedicated units.
- Eligibility conditions for triggering the right to dedication (also apply to the NYC code):
- Demolition/substantial renovation conducted after the owner filed a building permit application with the Department of Buildings (DOB) while falsely reporting no tenants occupied the building (when tenants did occupy).
- Demolition/substantial renovation necessitated by owner/landlord negligence.
- Demolition/substantial renovation necessitated by illegal code violations.
- Demolition/substantial renovation authorized under a project defined by the Urban Development Corporation Act.
2) New Section added to Emergency Tenant Protection Act-related provisions (E/T Act and related law)
- Mirrors the NYC code provision with a parallel requirement under:
- Emergency Tenant Protection Act of 1974
- Emergency Housing Rent Control Law
- Local emergency housing rent control acts
- NYC Administrative Code and related regulations
- Same triggers, requirements, and tenant right of first refusal as described above.
3) New Section added to Emergency Housing Rent Control Law (Chapter 274, Laws of 1946)
- Adds a subdivision 9 with identical text and effect as the above provisions, ensuring the requirement applies under the Emergency Housing Rent Control Law as well.
Effective date and sunset
- Effective immediately upon enactment.
- Provisions in Section 1 (city code amendment) are temporary in the sense that they are stated to expire on the same date as the underlying law they modify, unless extended, per the bill’s language. The expiration alignment references the existing schedule for the Emergency Housing Rent Control Law (as governed by 26-520 of the NYC Administrative Code).
Who is affected
- Property owners of residential buildings subject to rent regulation (rent-controlled or rent-stabilized units) in New York City.
- Tenants currently occupying units that are vacated or made uninhabitable due to demolition, new construction, or substantial renovation.
- Prospective tenants seeking units created as replacements after demolition/renovation.
- City/state entities enforcing rent regulation and construction-related permits (DOB) due to the added compliance requirements.
Procedural/timeline aspects
- Trigger events occur after demolition/new construction or substantial renovation results in uninhabitable or vacated units.
- Follow-on obligation activates upon completion of the new construction/renovation.
- The “right of first refusal” is granted to the tenants who were in occupancy immediately prior to demolition/renovation.
- The bill includes specific scenarios where the owner’s actions (e.g., misrepresenting tenant presence on permit filings, negligence, illegal code violations, or project eligibility under urban development acts) trigger the dedication requirement.
- The amendments reference and align with multiple strands of New York rent regulation law (city, state, and local programs).
Note on scope
- While the bill is filed in the New York State Senate, it interacts with both city (NYC Administrative Code) and state-level housing statutes, ensuring cross-restrictive applicability to covered units in the context of demolition/renovation within regulated housing stock.
This summary focuses on substantive content, applicability, and the anticipated impact on tenants and property owners under rent-regulated units undergoing demolition or substantial renovation.
