N.Y. Public Health Law § 1377: State rental registry and proactive inspections to identify lead hazards

* § 1377. State rental registry and proactive inspections to identify

lead hazards. 1. The department shall, in consultation with the division

of housing and community renewal, develop a registry for all residential

dwellings with two or more units built prior to nineteen hundred eighty

which, by virtue of their property class designation, are potentially

eligible for rental, lease, let or hiring out, and are located within

communities of concern as identified by the department. Such registry

shall only include qualifying residential dwellings outside a city with

a population of one million people or more. The department shall utilize

all available property information to develop the registry including but

not limited to information from tax assessment rolls and information

from property records in the office in which instruments affecting real

property in the county are recorded.

2. The department, or their designee, shall provide written notice to

the owners of residential dwellings qualifying for registration in

accordance with this section within sixty days of the effectiveness of

such registry.

3. Owners of all residential dwellings qualifying for registration in

accordance with this section shall certify as free of lead paint

hazards, in accordance with subdivision seven of this section and the

regulations promulgated thereunder. Inspection certifications must be

submitted by the owner to the local health department or their designee

for recording in the rental registry by October first of the year the

certification is due.

4. The department, or their designee, shall provide owners of

qualifying residential dwellings a minimum of two notices prior to the

deadline to submit a certification, not including the notification under

subdivision two of this section. Such notice shall include information

for owners to notify the department or their designee a residential

dwelling is not eligible for rental, lease, let or hiring out and are

therefore not required to submit a certification under this section.

If an owner fails to submit a certification by the deadline, or

incorrectly asserts that they are not required to submit a certification

under this section, the department, or their designee, shall provide an

additional notice prior to taking any further action.

5. The department shall establish an annual inspection and audit

process which shall review at least ten percent of the certification

inspections of residential dwellings qualifying for the rental registry.

Such process shall include individual inspections and document review to

ensure that owners complied with all obligations and responsibilities

under this section. Such audits shall be conducted in-person and shall

confirm that a residential dwelling is or is not eligible for the rental

registry and that the residential dwelling is free of lead paint

hazards.

6. The commissioner shall promulgate regulations as needed to

administer, coordinate, and enforce this section.

7. The commissioner shall promulgate regulations regarding the

inspections required to be completed pursuant to this section as well as

the certification of such inspections which shall include, but not be

limited to: (a) the frequency of such inspections which shall be no less

frequent than every three years; (b) the minimum conditions the

residential dwelling must meet for a valid inspection certification; (c)

qualifications for inspectors; (d) minimum standards for a standardized

form on which the owner of a residential dwelling may self-certify as to

a satisfactory inspection, such form shall require such owner to confirm

such residential dwelling meets all the requirements of paragraph (b) of

this subdivision and may require such owner to submit any documentation

deemed necessary by the commissioner, provided, however, such owner

shall meet the qualifications pursuant to paragraph (c) of this

subdivision; (e) alternative methods of certification, which may include

the submission of a valid and active residential occupancy permit for

which the minimum conditions required under paragraph (b) of this

subdivision were required to be met for such issuance; (f) procedures

for false certifications, upon a finding by the department that a

self-certified dwelling contains lead hazards; and (g) any other

information or requirements deemed necessary by the commissioner to

administer, coordinate, and enforce this section.

8. The inspection requirements under this section shall, at a minimum,

include visual inspections for deteriorated paint and outdoor soil

conditions, as well as the collection of dust wipe samples obtained in

accordance with United States Environmental Protection Agency protocols

for such procedures.

9. Remediation of lead-based paint hazards must be conducted in

compliance with all municipal requirements and specific requirements

specified in regulation.

10. A failure to file or filing a false certificate as required under

this section shall be subject to civil penalties under section twelve of

this chapter, in addition to any penalties that may apply.

11. The commissioner shall, on or before December thirty-first in each

year, beginning the calendar year after the effective date of this

section, submit a report to the governor, the temporary president of the

senate, and the speaker of the assembly on the activity and

implementation of this section. Such report shall include but not be

limited to: the number of residential properties qualifying for

registration, the number of properties required to submit inspection

certifications by October first of such year, the number of inspection

certifications submitted by October first of such year, the number of

inspections conducted pursuant to the audit process established in

subdivision five of this section, the results of the audit process

established in subdivision five of this section, and such other

information as the commissioner determines. The information provided in

the report shall reflect statewide activities in the aggregate and

activities for each community of concern.

* NB Repealed November 3, 2028