Governor Cuomo signed Assembly Bill A2665A, which prevents landlords from evicting tenants facing domestic violence or other crimes as a result of a nuisance violation. Landlords may now begin eviction proceedings against perpetrators of violence while the victim of domestic violence remains at his/her residence.
The stated purpose of the law:
“[n]o victim of domestic violence, or other person threatened with violence or in jeopardy of harm, should fail to access police or emergency assistance when needed because of the fear that doing so may result in losing their housing through eviction or other actions to remove them from the property.”Prior to the new law, landlords could evict victims of domestic violence for creating a "nuisance."
Now, victims can no longer be penalized for violating laws regulating nuisances unless the conduct is rooted in breaches of the lease, illicit activities, or other violations of the law. In short, multiple calls to the police for help no longer serve as grounds to evict a tenant.
