§ 5-07 Withholding.
RCNY § 5-07
(a)A household may request that SOTA payments be withheld from the landlord based on problems with housing conditions. HRA in its discretion may grant any such request based on: (1) submission by the household of documentation of a housing court or other court action against the landlord; (2) if the unit is outside New York City, submission by the household of documentation from the appropriate local government authority confirming the housing condition about which the household is complaining; or (3) if the unit is in New York City, confirmation that a violation has been issued by the New York City Department of Buildings, the New York City Department of Housing, Preservation and Development, or other applicable agency.
(b)In exercising its discretion, HRA may consider, among other things, the severity of the condition or conditions, the extent to which the condition or conditions affect the habitability of the unit, and any efforts by the landlord to resolve the conditions.
(c)If the request for withholding is granted, HRA will notify both the household and the landlord. The household or the landlord may request that SOTA payments be resumed and that SOTA payments previously withheld be released. If the landlord makes the request, the landlord must provide a court order or an inspection report indicating that the condition has been cleared and must do so within 60 days of the issue being resolved. If the program participant makes the request, they must provide a written attestation that the issues that led to the withholding have been resolved. Withheld payments will only be released if the issue was resolved while the program participant continued to reside in the unit and will only be released for periods of time when the program participant resided in the unit. (Added City Record 8/6/2021, eff. 9/7/2021)
