Nassau Rent Guideline No. 40 Improperly Based on Tenant Income

July 31, 2008

LVT Number: #20592

In 2005, the Nassau County Rent Guidelines Board issued Rent Guidelines Order No. 40, to cover leases commencing between Oct. 1, 2005 and Sept. 30, 2006. Rent Guideline 40 called for rent increases of 5.25 percent for one-year leases and 7.25 percent for two-year leases if tenants' gross aggregate family income was more than $24,000 per year. If tenants' income was less than that, allowable increases were 1 percent for one-year leases and 2 percent for two-year leases. Tenant organization challenged the Guideline Order, claiming that it was unlawful. The court ruled for tenants.

In 2005, the Nassau County Rent Guidelines Board issued Rent Guidelines Order No. 40, to cover leases commencing between Oct. 1, 2005 and Sept. 30, 2006. Rent Guideline 40 called for rent increases of 5.25 percent for one-year leases and 7.25 percent for two-year leases if tenants' gross aggregate family income was more than $24,000 per year. If tenants' income was less than that, allowable increases were 1 percent for one-year leases and 2 percent for two-year leases. Tenant organization challenged the Guideline Order, claiming that it was unlawful. The court ruled for tenants.
The Guidelines Board appealed and lost. The ETPA allows counties, cities, or towns to establish different types of housing accommodations with different rent increase levels. But the Rent Guidelines Board didn't have the authority under the ETPA to create a separate rent adjustment guideline based on tenant income.

New York State Tenants & Neighbors Coalition, Inc. v. Nassau County Rent Guidelines Board: NYLJ, 7/11/08, p. 36, col. 1 (App. Div. 2 Dept.; Rivera, JP, Ritter, Miller, Dillon, JJ)

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