Bill
S 3171
NJ S.3171 creates a multi-factor test to treat long-term hotel/motel occupants as tenants under the Anti-Eviction Act, expanding protections and limiting rapid evictions.
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Summary — New Jersey Senate Bill S.3171 (as amended)
Purpose
- To codify a multi‑factor test for determining when an occupant of a hotel or motel should be treated as a residential tenant (and thus be protected by the Anti‑Eviction Act) rather than a transient guest, clarifying when the residential eviction process applies.
Key provisions
- Replaces the term "guest" with the broader term "occupant" throughout the statute.
- Establishes a set of factors that courts and parties must consider; if those factors are “generally accurate,” an occupant is considered a tenant:
1. The occupant’s stay has lasted three months or longer (committee amendment: three consecutive months in the same unit).
2. Evidence of intent to stay long‑term (examples: registering to vote, enrolling children in public school, using the hotel/motel address for mail/deliveries). Committee amendment adds that changing a driver/non‑driver ID address or using hotel as primary address qualifies.
3. The hotel/motel operator had reason to know the occupant intended a long stay (committee amendment: operator was notified by occupant of an intent to stay 3+ months).
4. The hotel/motel is the occupant’s only place of residence.
5. A majority of other guests are long‑term and consider the property their primary residence.
6. The occupant’s unit contains basic cooking appliances (stove, oven, refrigerator).
7. The occupant uses personal linens and performs their own housekeeping.
- Adds judicial discretion to consider other relevant facts beyond the listed factors.
- Addresses occupants placed in hotels/motels with emergency assistance (P.L.1997, c.14): an occupant receiving or appealing emergency assistance and using the hotel/motel as temporary housing is to be considered a tenant; tenant status is lost if emergency assistance is denied or exhausted.
- Registration information: an occupant who willfully withholds information necessary for unit registration cannot claim tenant status; conversely, if a hotel/motel owner/operator willfully or negligently fails to collect necessary registration information, the lack of registration does not defeat a claim of tenancy.
Who is affected
- Hotel and motel owners/operators: may face expanded obligations and potential limits on summary removal of occupants; must be attentive to recordkeeping and evidence about occupants’ intent and length of stay.
- Occupants of hotels/motels: long‑term occupants (including those placed by emergency assistance programs) gain clearer protections under residential eviction rules.
- Courts and local agencies: will apply the statutory multi‑factor test in eviction/removal disputes; social service agencies involved in emergency placements may be affected by tenant‑status determinations.
- Municipalities and housing services: impacts on use of hotels/motels for temporary housing and related eviction procedures.
Procedural timeline / status (from provided materials)
- Introduced and referred to the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee (May 9, 2024).
- Reported out of the Senate Community and Urban Affairs Committee with amendments (June 17, 2024).
- Legislative record includes later committee referrals and readings in 2025 (entries indicate referrals to Higher Education and to Small Business and Entrepreneurship); status shown as “REFERRED TO HIGHER EDUCATION.” (Materials contain some date/committee inconsistencies.)
Effective date
- The bill states it would take effect immediately upon enactment.
Relevant statutory references
- Anti‑Eviction Act: N.J.S.A. 2A:18‑61.1 et seq.
- Emergency assistance program: P.L.1997, c.14 (C.44:10‑44 et al.)
Potential impacts and considerations
- Provides clearer, statutory guidance where courts previously applied common‑law or case law tests.
- Likely to reduce ambiguity in disputes but may increase litigation over the application of factors and evidence of intent.
- May affect hotels/motels that function as de facto long‑term housing or host residents placed via public assistance, shifting some housing‑law obligations onto operators.
Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.
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