New York Codes, Rules and Regulations › Title 9 - EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT › Subtitle A - Governor's Office › Chapter I - Executive Orders › Part 5 - Executive Orders (George E. Pataki) › Section 5.53 - Executive Order No. 53: Establishing a Special Prosecutor to Inquire into Criminal Acts by Landlords Against Tenants in the Event of a Lapse of the Rent Control and Stabilization Laws. [*]

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 28, July 10, 2024
WHEREAS, the State's rent control and stabilization laws,
					 which protect more than two million New Yorkers, will expire on June 16, 1997
					 unless renewed by the State Legislature;
WHEREAS, there is concern that if the rent laws expire,
					 unscrupulous landlords may attempt to unlawfully force tenants from their
					 apartments or engage in illegal rent gouging;
WHEREAS, the right to live in peace in one's own home is
					 fundamental to the American way of life, and no renters should suffer the
					 indignity of being illegally forced from their homes;
WHEREAS, illegal acts by building owners that threaten the
					 security of a person's home are reprehensible crimes and must be taken
					 seriously by all public officials, particularly those charged with prosecuting
					 the law; and
WHEREAS, unscrupulous owners who attempt to illegally force
					 tenants from their homes or engage in unlawful rent gouging must be prosecuted
					 to the fullest extent allowed by law;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE E. PATAKI, Governor of the State
					 of New York, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and
					 Laws of the State of New York, and particularly by subdivision eight of section sixty three  of the Executive Law, and in accordance with the statute and law in
					 such case made and provided, find it to be in the public interest to require
					 that the Attorney General inquire, in the circumstance and the manner hereafter
					 provided, into matters concerning public peace, public safety and public
					 justice with respect to criminal acts committed by building owners or their
					 agents against tenants in New York State arising from a lapse of the State's
					 rent control and stabilization laws.
I hereby appoint the Attorney General as Special Prosecutor
					 to lead the investigatory and prosecutorial efforts pursuant to this Order. The
					 Attorney General and such deputies and assistants as he deems necessary shall
					 have the powers and duties specified in subdivision eight of section sixty three  of the Executive Law for the purpose of this Order.
When making an inquiry pursuant to this Order, the Special
					 Prosecutor shall investigate illegal conduct by building owners against tenants
					 arising from a lapse of the State's rent control and stabilization laws, in
					 cooperation with the district attorney of the county wherein the offense or
					 portion thereof is alleged to have been committed. Upon a determination by the
					 Special Prosecutor that there is probable cause to believe a building owner or
					 his agent has engaged in such illegal conduct, the Special Prosecutor shall
					 notify the Counsel to the Governor of the determination, the basis therefor,
					 and the status of the criminal prosecution, if any, against the alleged
					 wrongdoer.
The Special Prosecutor, his deputies and assistants, and
					 any other personnel he deems necessary shall assist in the prosecution of such
					 crimes upon the request of the district attorney. Where such assistance is
					 provided, the district attorney shall retain exclusive authority to direct the
					 prosecution of the case, unless otherwise provided by law.
Every department, division, board, bureau and agency of
					 this State shall provide to the Special Prosecutor every assistance, facility
					 and cooperation he deems proper or desirable for the accomplishment of the
					 purposes of this Order.
The Mayors or other chief executive officers of all cities,
					 towns and villages, the district attorneys of each of the counties in the
					 State, the sheriffs of such counties, the commissioners of police or persons
					 having comparable title or duties exercising supervision of police forces
					 within the State are called upon to cooperate and make every reasonable
					 facility and assistance to the Special Prosecutor in the performance of his
					 duties pursuant to this Order.
The Special Prosecutor shall report weekly to the Counsel
					 to the Governor regarding the implementation of this order, including
					 information relating to ongoing investigations and criminal prosecutions and
					 any recommendations for legislative changes necessary or desirable to
					 effectuate the purposes of this Order.
I hereby direct the Division of Housing and Community
					 Renewal (the Division) to establish a toll-free hotline by which tenant
					 complaints of illegal conduct by building owners or their agents can be
					 reported and transmitted forthwith to the Special Prosecutor. Such hotline
					 shall be available 24 hours each day beginning on 12:01 a.m. on Monday, June
					 16, 1997. The Division is further directed to make trained personnel available
					 to respond to tenant inquiries on such hotline.
The Chief Judge and Chief Administrative Judge of the New
					 York State Unified Court System are hereby requested to temporarily assign such
					 judges and justices of the Unified Court System and other personnel as they
					 deem necessary to the Housing Part of the Civil Court of the City of New York
					 and to other courts throughout the State, particularly in Westchester, Nassau,
					 Rockland and Erie counties, to ensure that complaints by tenants against
					 building owners arising from a lapse in the State's rent regulation laws are
					 heard as expeditiously as possible.
The Division of Housing and Community Renewal is hereby
					 further directed to continue processing administrative complaints by tenants
					 against building owners notwithstanding the lapse of the rent regulation laws,
					 with particular regard paid to complaints of tenant harassment and conditions
					 affecting the health or safety of building residents.
All attorneys in good standing who are admitted to practice
					 law in the State of New York, all of whom serve as officers of the Courts of
					 this State, and their representative associations and societies, including but
					 not limited to the New York State Bar Association and the Association of the
					 Bar of the City of New York, are hereby encouraged to volunteer their services
					 to provide
pro bono
assistance to tenants in need of legal
					 services.
The Counsel to the Governor is hereby directed to prepare
					 such legislation as he deems necessary or desirable to effectuate the purposes
					 of this Order for introduction as a Governor's Program Bill.
Signed: George E. Pataki
Dated: June 14, 1997
Footnotes
* [Revoked by Executive Order
					 No. 5 (Eliot Spitzer),
infra.
] [Revoked by Executive Order No.
					 9 (David A. Paterson),
infra.
] [Revoked by Executive Order No.
					 2 (Andrew M. Cuomo),
infra.
]