§ 610 — Rental assistance and legal regulated rents

§ 610. Rental assistance and legal regulated rents. 1. (a)\nNotwithstanding the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen\nseventy-four or the rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred\nsixty-nine, any regulation promulgated pursuant to such act or law, or\nany other provision of law, where a housing accommodation is subject to\na regulatory agreement with a state or municipal agency or public\nbenefit corporation, or a political subdivision of the state, and where\na federal, state, or local program provides rental assistance for such\nhousing accommodation, such state or municipal agency or public benefit\ncorporation, or political subdivision of the state, may allow in such\nregulatory agreement the owner of such housing accommodation to charge\nand collect a rent for such housing accommodation that (i) does not\nexceed the maximum payment standard or contract rent that the rental\nassistance program may provide for such housing accommodation, but (ii)\ndoes exceed the legal regulated rent for the housing accommodation.\n (b) If any such rental assistance ends upon the vacancy of the housing\naccommodation, the owner of such housing accommodation shall thereafter\ncharge and collect a rent for such housing accommodation that does not\nexceed the lesser of (i) the previously established legal regulated rent\nfor such housing accommodation, as adjusted by the most recent\napplicable guidelines increases approved by a rent guidelines board\nestablished pursuant to the emergency tenant protection act of nineteen\nseventy-four and any other increases authorized by law, regardless of\nwhen the previously established legal regulated rent was last charged,\nand (ii) any lower rent that is required by such regulatory agreement.\n (c) If any such rental assistance ends during a tenancy, including,\nbut not limited to, upon the renewal of a lease, the owner of such\nhousing accommodation shall thereafter charge and collect a rent for\nsuch housing accommodation that does not exceed the lesser of (i) the\npreviously established legal regulated rent for such housing\naccommodation, as adjusted by the most recent applicable guidelines\nincreases approved by a rent guidelines board established pursuant to\nthe emergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four and any\nother increases authorized by law, regardless of when the previously\nestablished legal regulated rent was last charged, (ii) any rent charged\nto and paid by the tenant immediately prior to the commencement of the\nrental assistance that was less than the legal regulated rent for such\nhousing accommodation, as adjusted by such most recent applicable\nguidelines increases and any other increases authorized by law, and\n(iii) any lower rent that is required by such regulatory agreement.\n 2. Any rent charged pursuant to subdivision one of this section in\nexcess of the legal regulated rent for a housing accommodation shall not\nbe registered as the legal regulated rent pursuant to the emergency\ntenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four or the rent stabilization\nlaw of nineteen hundred sixty-nine. The owner of such housing\naccommodation shall continue to register the legal regulated rent and\nany preferential rent calculated according to applicable guidelines\nincreases applied to the previously established legal regulated rent or\npreferential rent, respectively, and separately register the actual rent\ncharged to the tenant pursuant to subdivision one of this section.\n 3. Where the owner of a housing accommodation charges and collects a\nrent that exceeds the legal regulated rent for such housing\naccommodation pursuant to subdivision one of this section, such owner\nshall provide every tenant of such housing accommodation with a notice,\nattached to the initial lease and all renewal leases, advising the\ntenant in plain language that if such tenant ceases to receive the\nrental assistance described in subdivision one of this section for any\nreason, the rent for such housing accommodation shall be the legal\nregulated rent, or any lower rent as required by subdivision one of this\nsection. The owner shall disclose any applicable regulatory agreement\nand the applicability of this section in any legal proceeding brought\nagainst a tenant whose rent is governed by this section.\n 4. An owner of a housing accommodation who fails to adjust a rent upon\nthe termination of any such rental assistance as required by subdivision\none of this section shall refund to the tenant the amount of the\novercharge and be liable for treble damages. The tenant shall have the\nright to recover such overcharges and damages from the date of their\naccrual, notwithstanding any statute of limitations set forth in the\nemergency tenant protection act of nineteen seventy-four or the rent\nstabilization law of nineteen hundred sixty-nine. The tenant may raise\nsuch an overcharge as a claim or defense in any court of appropriate\njurisdiction, or in a proceeding at the division of housing and\ncommunity renewal, pursuant to the emergency tenant protection act of\nnineteen seventy-four or the rent stabilization law of nineteen hundred\nsixty-nine.\n 5. Where a regulatory agreement allows an owner of a housing\naccommodation to charge and collect a rent for the housing accommodation\nthat exceeds the legal regulated rent for such housing accommodation in\naccordance with subdivision one of this section, the state or municipal\nagency or public benefit corporation, or political subdivision of the\nstate, that has executed the regulatory agreement shall audit such\nowner's records at least once every three years to verify that such\nowner is complying with the provisions of this section.\n