February 2025
Weekly Report for February 28, 2025
State Fire Prevention and Building Code Council drops home fire sprinkler mandate following REALTOR® concerns
On Friday, February 28, the New York State Fire Prevention and Building Code Council voted to advance an updated Uniform Code which sets minimum standards for building construction in New York. Among the proposals included in the initial draft Code was a requirement that all new one- and two-family residential construction be installed with an automatic fire sprinkler system. In response, NYSAR quickly engaged Governor Hochul’s administration and state lawmakers to oppose the overly restrictive measure as it would make home buying even less affordable across the state. Following a months-long public campaign and REALTOR® action, the Code Council removed the mandate to require automatic fire sprinkler systems in new one- and two-family home construction. Read NYSAR’s full statement here.
NYC Council Speaker could be the next candidate in race for NYC Mayor
This week, New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams announced that she created a committee to run for mayor in what is already a large field of Democratic candidates, including current mayor Eric Adams, city Comptroller Brad Lander, former city Comptroller Scott Stringer, Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, State Senators Zellnor Myrie and Jessica Ramos, and attorney Jim Walden. Former Governor Andrew Cuomo has yet to formally announce his candidacy, however a super PAC was recently formed to support his run with up to $15 million. Read more here.
State Senators propose scaling back New York’s climate laws
This week, Republican State Senators introduced a package of bills that would delay certain aspects of the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) and study the costs associated with the transition from fossil fuels. The legislation reflects concerns with rising utility bills and the state requirement for all new construction to be all electric beginning in 2026. Read more here.
Weekly Report for February 21, 2025
Take Action Now: State Code Council set to make decision on mandated home fire sprinklers Feb. 28
The NYS Fire Prevention and Building Code Council is scheduled to meet on Friday, February 28, 2025 at 10 a.m. to decide whether to adopt a new state fire sprinkler mandate. The proposed code change would mandate the installation of residential fire sprinkler systems in all new one- and two-family homes and townhomes across New York. NYSAR is urging REALTORS® and residents to tell Governor Hochul, Secretary of State, and state lawmakers to oppose the proposed mandate.
Learn more and Take Action here.
Read an Op-Ed by REALTOR® and volunteer firefighter Dan Davies here.
FinCEN BOI Rule back in effect – compliance deadline extended to March 21, 2025
The Financial Crime Enforcement Network‘s (FinCEN) Beneficial Ownership Information reporting rule and requirements as mandated by the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) are back in effect. Actions by the Supreme Court and the Texas federal court will now allow FinCEN to proceed with further implementation and enforcement of the Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting Rule. FinCEN has announced that it is extending the compliance deadline to March 21, 2025, for reporting companies and entities to file initial BOI reports or to update and correct a BOI report. FinCEN’s Impact Statement can be found here regarding the current litigation and update.
States file federal lawsuit challenging New York’s Climate Change Superfund Act
More than 20 states filed a federal lawsuit against New York earlier this month challenging the constitutionality of the new Climate Change Superfund Act, which will establish regulations seeking to collect roughly $75 billion from companies deemed responsible for greenhouse gas emissions due to their refinement and production of fossil fuels. Read more here.
Gov. Hochul to seek new state oversight over New York City and Mayor
Governor Kathy Hochul of New York announced on Thursday that she would not exercise her authority to remove New York City Mayor Eric Adams from office for now, but would seek to impose strict new guardrails on his administration. The proposed changes included creating a new state deputy inspector general focused on New York City’s operations; establishing a fund for the city comptroller, public advocate and City Council speaker to hire outside counsel; and a legal change to bar the mayor from firing the head of the city’s Department of Investigation without the approval of the state inspector general. Read more here.
Weekly Report for February 14, 2025
NYSAR’s 2025 Legislative Priorities
NYSAR’s Legislative Steering Committee recently approved its 2025 Legislative Advocacy Agenda at NYSAR’s Mid-Winter Business Meetings held earlier this month in February. Among the priorities include support for a first-time homebuyer savings account program (recently passed in the State Senate), requiring a written buyer representation agreement between a broker and buyer, increasing transparency in the cooperative housing purchase process, combatting illegal discrimination and bias in the appraisals, and prohibiting predatory long-term listing agreements, and more. You can find a full list of NYSAR’s Legislative Priorities here.
State lawmakers introduce workaround bill to ease adoption of local rent control measures
This week, legislation was introduced (S.4659/A.4877) that would authorize towns, villages and cities outside of New York City to bypass criteria necessary to declare a housing emergency and adopt local rent control measures. The bill would remove the requirement for municipalities to conduct a rental vacancy study and prove that vacancy rates are 5 percent or below before being able to impose local rent control regulations. NYSAR opposes the imposition of local “good cause” and rent control policies which discourage new housing development and place a disproportionate financial burden on small property owners. Read more here.
Save the Date: NYSAR 2025 Lobby Day in Albany – Tuesday, April 29, 2025
Please save the date for NYSAR’s annual Lobby Day at the Albany State Capitol on Tuesday, April 29, 2025. More details will be released in the coming weeks, including hotel accommodations, itinerary, guest speakers, and reimbursement information. Learn more here.
Weekly Report for February 7, 2025
State Senate passes NYSAR-supported bill to create first-time homebuyer savings account program
On February 4, the NYS Senate unanimously passed NYSAR-supported legislation to create a first-time homebuyer savings account program (S.1157), sponsored by Sen. Jeremy Cooney of Rochester. The bill has been a REALTOR® priority for several years. NYSAR 2025 President Jacqlene Rose stated, “NYSAR is proud to have worked with Senator Cooney in developing the legislation. Our REALTOR® members see the down-payment hurdles first time homebuyers face each day, and this legislation provides New Yorkers with an incentive to save for a first home in New York, build generational wealth and achieve the American dream of homeownership.” Read more here.
NYS Lead Rental Registry Program Regulations – Public Comment period ends Feb. 24
The NYS Department of Health is accepting public comments on draft regulations implementing the New York State Lead Rental Registry Program to address childhood lead poisonings by requiring landlords to remove sources of lead exposure in pre-1980 rental units in certain zip codes within 25 communities of concern, including: Albany, Amsterdam, Auburn, Binghamton, Buffalo, Cheektowaga, Elmira, Gloversville, Jamestown, Kingston, Middletown, Mount Vernon, New Rochelle, Newburgh, Niagara Falls, Poughkeepsie, Rochester, Rome, Schenectady, Spring Valley, Syracuse, Troy, Utica, Watertown, and Yonkers.
The public comment period for draft regulations ends on February 23, 2025. After regulations are finalized, the Department will offer trainings for landlords, contractors, and local code enforcement officers. The final regulations are scheduled to go into effect in November 2025.
You can submit a public comment here: https://regs.health.ny.gov/regulations/proposed-rule-making
Find more information here: https://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/lead/lead_rental_registry.htm
How “good cause eviction” is raising New Yorkers’ rents
Renters residing in New York City and municipalities that have adopted “good cause” eviction, which NYSAR strongly opposed, are likely facing higher rent increases now due to the law. The average monthly CPI for the NY/NJ/PA area increased by roughly 3.8 percent in 2023 and again in 2024. Following enactment of the state “good cause” eviction law, which imposes rent increase restrictions in New York City and other municipalities that have opted into the law, the maximum rent increase currently sits at around 8.8 percent in New York City. Building owners and landlords are now more likely to set rent increases at the 8.8 percent provided to them, where they may have not increased rents at all. Unfortunately, New York tenants covered by “good cause” eviction will end up paying more than if the law had not passed. Read more here.