Over the past three years I have met with many advocates on both sides of the “good cause” eviction issue along with listening to the concerns of community members on both sides of the issue. My approach when it comes to considering legislation is deliberative. I will talk to anyone and everyone and most people know that I am always willing to meet and listen on issues, even if we might not agree. Interestingly enough, two years ago housing advocates came into my office and screamed at my staff and accused them of hiding me. I think anyone who knows me, knows that I do not hide from issues or from meeting with people. I give my personal cell phone out publicly on a regular basis (hint – it’s in my email signature) and personally respond to my emails. To say that I will not have a conversation is absolutely false.

I was recently told that I was described as a leading opponent of the good cause eviction legislation that has been proposed in the NYS Legislature. Let me be clear – I do not oppose Good Cause Eviction.  That being said I have heard concerns and have raised them with proponents of the legislation but to say that I am actively working against the legislation or I am the reason that the legislation has not moved forward is false. I am not even a member of the NYS Assembly Housing Committee where the bill is currently.

I think it is important to remember that we can agree on the end goal and not the means and that is the case with Good Cause. I have been hearing more often lately that I am opposed to things that I am not actually opposed to in principle.  We can agree on a goal and have a discussion of the concerns surrounding the specifics of a proposal. Lately, many of the conversations have been “if you are not with us on how we want to do it, you are against us.” I respect the frustration that many feel about the pace of policy change; however, I hope that others can understand that it is frustrating to have your position misstated. If I did not ask questions, I would not be serving the  constituents of the 108th AD in the way that they deserve.  Government is not for one part of the district. It is for all.

I fully recognize and understand that finding safe, secure, and affordable housing is a struggle for far too many. Honestly, in as much as we spend time on focusing on affordable rent, the goal should be to provide affordable homeownership opportunities to move people away from having to be as reliant on renting in the first place. The reality is that the housing market is outside the price range for many, even in the middle class, and we need to undertake work to address this crisis. There are no easy solutions to the problems of housing and rent affordability.

As for my work in regards to tenants rights, I voted in favor of the Housing Stability and Tenant Protection Act of 2019 that created stronger tenant protections statewide. I passed a bill (A.3028/S.1633) into law last year that will provide municipalities with expanded authority to seek an order to address code violations and blighted property.  I also voted for and supported all tenant eviction moratoriums throughout the pandemic.

In 2019, I also started working with the New York State Conference of Mayors on receivership legislation to address property conditions for renters and to expand receivership proceedings that are available in New York City and some downstate counties to the rest of upstate. That legislation came close to passing both houses last year and I have worked hard over the last several months to make sure this legislation becomes law this year to protect tenants from losing their housing when a landlord checks out.

Another initiative that I think will be transformative in many ways and have supported is the Albany Multi-Craft Apprenticeship Preparation Program (MAPP). This program will not only expand career opportunities in the trades for those in underserved communities who were the victims of redlining but also will teach people construction skills that will allow them to rehab and renovate houses for themselves and put them on a path to homeownership.  Just looking at the Capital City of Albany there are over 1,000 buildings in need of improvements and are looking for a long term homeowner.  With MAPP we can put individuals on the path to good middle class jobs and working with partners such as the Albany County Land Bank, a critical funding partner, with help from the state, I would like to change endless cycle of perpetual renters and transition to long term homeowners. Now that is transformational and setting individuals up to build generational wealth.

As for good cause eviction, in my opinion, the best way to enact good cause legislation is at the local level to allow the community concerns to be voiced and to shape what is enacted into law. Each community is different especially in the context of rent affordability, what works in New York City does not necessarily apply to the City of Albany. Looking at the 108th District that I represent, what is good for the City of Albany is not necessarily the right fit for the Town of Waterford.

I commend the City of Albany Common Council legislators and Mayor Sheehan for their deliberative and thoughtful efforts to pass Local Law F to protect tenants as well as small landlords of owner-occupied properties with four units or less. To their credit, they evaluated changes that needed to be made to the legislation and made amendments which led to an outcome that was responsive to concerns expressed by members of the local community. Through this process, I believe we have a starting framework for this effort to be replicated throughout the state of New York on the local level.  However, it is important to be clear that there are concerns that come up that need to be discussed in detail and not left to chance.

One of the concerns that I have frequently heard about is the potential difficulty of removing a tenant that may be creating a nuisance and affecting the quality of life of other tenants or neighbors. Both the state and City of Albany good cause bills have a provision for removal of tenants based on nuisance issues. I do wonder how the nuisance is going to be corroborated especially having heard both sides of a number of landlord and tenant disputes. Housing courts likely will have an influx of disputes to settle as these cases come forward.

The main concerns that have been raised in the context of good cause are the automatic renewal of leases and the cap on rent increases. The automatic renewal of leases provision is understandable because we know the importance of stable and affordable housing especially for families with children. It is fair that people do not want to keep uprooting their kids and moving them around if the landlord decides not to renew a lease after a year. On the other hand, there are people who live in our communities who have rental properties, and the prospect of being told what to do with something when you are a responsible owner does not sit well with many. It is worth noting that we are talking about private property.  As a landlord, one has  a legal responsibility to provide safe housing, make the necessary repairs, and maintain the property. Unfortunately, there are landlords who do not fulfill their obligations and that is why we have tenant protection laws in place. However, if the landlord is doing everything they are supposed to do, some would consider it an undue burden to force them to enter into another lease which is a contract and creates obligations for them. Being a landlord when it is done correctly is work. There are times when landlords may need a break from having tenants because they have too many other obligations taking up their time and finances and they would be prevented from making that choice.

The cap on rent increases is also a complicated issue without an easy solution. It is without question that rent is far too unaffordable for too many. A study found that rents are out of reach for those who earn the minimum wage which comes as no surprise to most people. Questions have been raised as to whether a cap on rents is going to impact the investment that the landlord is going to put into improving and maintaining the property. In addition, going back to the issue of each locality having different needs, a cap on rent increases is not a one size fits all solution.  Each community should make that decision as it will have an impact on their respective tax base along with the services it offers to the public and the taxes it levies as well.

Keeping all of this in mind, in my most recent constituent survey I posed the following question:

“Good Cause eviction legislation (A.5573) has been proposed statewide that would apply to rental units except owner-occupied buildings with four or fewer units and subject to other limited exceptions. A tenant would only be able to be evicted for “good cause” grounds including: nonpayment of  rent, the tenant is violating a substantial obligation of tenancy, tenant is committing or permitting a nuisance or damage to the property, the tenant  occupancy violates the law or the tenant is using the housing for illegal purposes, the tenant is unreasonably prohibiting the landlord from accessing  the property for improvements or repairs, or the landlord wants to use property for personal use or for occupancy by an immediate family member.  The bill would also prohibit rent increases above either three percent or one and one-half times the annual percentage change in the Consumer  Price Index for the region where the housing is located (whichever is greater).

Currently, the City of Albany has a good cause eviction local law providing that tenants in the City of Albany will be entitled to a renewal lease  unless the landlord can substantiate a good cause for the tenant’s eviction such as nonpayment of rent, lease violations, nuisance etc. and provides  protection against an unconscionable rent hike by capping rent increases at 5%.

Do you support a statewide good cause law and why?”

The response rate for my Fall 2021 survey was much lower than usual and I only received 273 responses on the Good Cause question with 178 responding in favor and 95 opposed. To be fair, while a majority of respondents responded favorably in support of Good Cause, the “why” part of the question was important because many people were confused by the question, did not understand components of the proposed legislation, and were confused about what the current law is regarding evictions and assumed that landlords can evict tenants for no reason at all, which is not correct because tenants do have legal rights in New York State. To that end, I do cosponsor a bill (A.7570A) that would provide a right to counsel in eviction cases, that I believe would assist tenants in enforcing those rights.  Additionally, with the eviction moratorium passed by the Legislature in the summer of 2021, I requested that the Assembly include $20 million in funds for legal counsel in eviction cases knowing that at some point that the moratorium would expire.  Thanks to NYS Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, we made that happen which is critical for tenants who are facing the eviction process.

I do consider the impacts of unintended consequences when looking at legislation and while I am not opposed to the Good Cause eviction bill being proposed in the NYS Legislature, I have heard concerns and I am glad to see that localities are considering these measures. At a minimum we should at least provide a framework on a model good cause eviction bill that local governments can adopt that will hold up in a court of law which is a concern I have heard. That being said there are multiple bills that approach the intent of good cause and I am committed to working with my colleagues from one end of the state to the other on this matter.

I will continue to listen to anyone who wants to speak with me on the issue, will continue to keep an open mind, and will continue to be deliberative as I am on all issues because I know they have a profound impact on the people I represent.

P.S.  If you have any questions please send me a note at mcdonaldj@nyassembly.gov or give me a call at my office at 518-455-4474 or on my cell at 518-365-2569.