STATE OF NEW YORK
       ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         11354
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                      May 8, 2002
                                      ___________
 
       Introduced  by  COMMITTEE  ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. Dinowitz,
         Gottfried, Perry, Millman, Colton, Brennan, A. Cohen, M. Cohen,  Cook,
         Farrell, Glick, Green, Higgins, Jacobs, Kaufman, Lafayette, Mayersohn,
         Pheffer, Towns, Weisenberg) -- read once and referred to the Committee
         on Codes
 
       AN  ACT  to  amend  the civil practice law and rules, in relation to the
         statute of limitations for commencement of  an  action  for  a  rental
         overcharge
 
         The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
       bly, do enact as follows:
 
    1    Section 1. Section 213-a of the  civil  practice  law  and  rules,  as
    2  amended  by  chapter  116  of  the  laws  of 1997, is amended to read as
    3  follows:
    4    § 213-a. Actions to be commenced within four years;  residential  rent
    5  overcharge.  An  action  on  a  residential  rent  overcharge  shall  be
    6  commenced within four years of the date the resident knew or should have
    7  known of the first overcharge alleged and no determination of  an  over-
    8  charge  and  no  award  or  calculation of an award of the amount of any
    9  overcharge may be based upon an overcharge  having  occurred  more  than
   10  four  years  before the action is commenced. This section shall preclude
   11  examination of the rental history of the housing accommodation prior  to
   12  the  four-year  period  immediately  preceding  the  commencement of the
   13  action.
   14    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and  shall  apply  to  any
   15  action  or proceeding pending in any court or any application, complaint
   16  or proceeding before an administrative agency on the effective  date  of
   17  this act, as well as any action or proceeding commenced thereafter.
 
 
 
        EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD15487-01-2

 
BILL NUMBER: A11354
 
SPONSOR: Rules (Dinowitz)

 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the civil practice law and rules, in
relation to the statute of limitations for commencement of an action for
a rental overcharge
 
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: This bill will require a claimant in
an action for rent overcharge to commence proceedings within four years
of the time claimant knew or should have known of the rent overcharge.
 
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: The following words are to be inserted
into Section 213-a of the Civil Practice Law and Rules "date the resi-
dent knew or should have known of the".
 
 
JUSTIFICATION: Sections 213-a of the Civil Practice Law and Rules has
been interpreted by the courts to permit the holder of an rental over-
charge claim to forfeit his/her claim without ever knowing that such a
claim had accrued.
 
 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: None.
 
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.
 
 
EFFECTIVE DATE: Immediately.