S 5001: Provides for including siblings of parents and children of siblings in the definition of "family member" in relation to regulations pertaining to rights of family members to succeed in certain cases to the rights of certain tenants.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 5001 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE February 14, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN-SIGAL, JACKSON, SALAZAR -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Housing, Construction and Community Development AN ACT to amend the public housing law, in relation to the definition of "family member" The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 4 of section 14 of the public 2 housing law, as added by chapter 116 of the laws of 1997, is amended to 3 read as follows: 4 (c) that for the purposes of such regulations: (i) "family member" 5 shall be defined as a [husband, wife, son, daughter, stepson, step- 6 daughter, father, mother, stepfather, stepmother, brother, sister, 7 grandfather, grandmother, grandson, granddaughter, daughter-in-law, 8 son-in-law, mother-in-law or father-in-law] spouse, child, stepchild, 9 parent, stepparent, sibling, sibling of a parent, child of a sibling, 10 grandparent, grandchild, spouse of a child, or parent of a spouse of the 11 tenant; or any other person residing with the tenant in the housing 12 accommodation as a primary residence who can prove emotional and finan- 13 cial commitment, and interdependence between such person and the tenant. 14 Although no single factor shall be solely determinative, evidence which 15 is to be considered in determining whether such emotional and financial 16 commitment and interdependence existed, may include, without limitation, 17 such factors as listed below. In no event would evidence of a sexual 18 relationship between such persons be required or considered. 19 (A) longevity of the relationship; 20 (B) sharing of or relying upon each other for payment of household or 21 family expenses, or other common necessities of life; 22 (C) intermingling of finances as evidenced by, among other things, 23 joint ownership of bank accounts, personal and real property, credit 24 cards, loan obligations, sharing a household budget for purposes of EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00955-01-5 
 S. 5001 2 1 receiving government benefits, or such other factors as may be deter- 2 mined by regulation; 3 (D) engaging in family-type activities by jointly attending family 4 functions, holidays and celebrations, social and recreational activ- 5 ities, or such other factors as may be determined by regulation; 6 (E) formalizing of legal obligations, intentions, and responsibilities 7 to each other by such means as executing wills naming each other as 8 executor or beneficiary, conferring upon each other a power of attorney 9 or authority to make health care decisions each for the other, entering 10 into a personal relationship contract, making a domestic partnership 11 declaration, or serving as a representative payee for purposes of public 12 benefits, or such other factors as may be determined by regulation; 13 (F) holding themselves out as family members to other family members, 14 friends, members of the community or religious institutions, or society 15 in general, through their words or actions; 16 (G) regularly performing family functions, such as caring for each 17 other or each other's extended family members, or relying upon each 18 other for daily family services; 19 (H) engaging in any other pattern of behavior, agreement, or other 20 action which evidences the intention of creating a long-term, emotional- 21 ly-committed relationship. 22 (ii) a "senior citizen" is defined as a person who is sixty-two years 23 of age or older; 24 (iii) a "disabled person" is defined as a person who has an impairment 25 which results from anatomical, physiological or psychological condi- 26 tions, other than addiction to alcohol, gambling, or any controlled 27 substance, which are demonstrable by medically acceptable clinical and 28 laboratory diagnostic techniques, and which are expected to be permanent 29 and which substantially limit one or more of such person's major life 30 activities. 31 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of January next succeed- 32 ing the date on which it shall have become a law.