File #: Res 0340-2006    Version: * Name: Provide tax credits to landlords of multiple dwelling residences who provide grab bars for senior citizen and disabled tenants.
Type: Resolution Status: Filed
Committee: Committee on Aging
On agenda: 5/24/2006
Enactment date: Law number:
Title: Resolution calling for the re-introduction and adoption of State Senate Bill S.7360 and State Assembly Bill A.11706, which would allow the City to provide tax credits to landlords of multiple dwelling residences who provide grab bars for senior citizen and disabled tenants who live in such dwellings.
Sponsors: Alan J. Gerson, Gale A. Brewer, Inez E. Dickens, Simcha Felder, Helen D. Foster, Sara M. Gonzalez, Letitia James, G. Oliver Koppell, John C. Liu, Melissa Mark-Viverito, Domenic M. Recchia, Jr., James Sanders, Jr., David I. Weprin, Thomas White, Jr.
Council Member Sponsors: 14
Attachments: 1. Cover Sheet

Res. No. 340

 

Resolution calling for the re-introduction and adoption of State Senate Bill S.7360 and State Assembly Bill A.11706, which would allow the City to provide tax credits to landlords of multiple dwelling residences who provide grab bars for senior citizen and disabled tenants who live in such dwellings.

 

By Council Members Gerson, Brewer, Dickens, Felder, Foster, Gonzalez, James, Koppell, Liu, Mark-Viverito, Recchia Jr., Sanders Jr., Weprin and White Jr.

 

Whereas, According to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, falls are the leading cause of injury related deaths for New York City residents over the age of sixty-five; and

Whereas, The Council of Senior Centers and Services reports that 20% to 30% of those seniors who fall sustain moderate to severe injuries, and 25% of seniors who sustain hip fractures die within one year after such incidents; and

Whereas, According to a 2003 report by the Council of Senior Centers and Services, in 1994, the nationwide cost for all falls by senior citizens was $20.2 billion, and is expected to rise to $32.4 billion by the year 2020; and

Whereas, Protective devices such as grab bars that help prevent slippage in bathtubs and shower stalls are essential in preventing accidents for seniors and the disabled; and

Whereas, New York City’s Independent Budget Office has estimated that the initial cost of installing grab bars in all eligible households would be $38 million; and

Whereas, The cost of installation would be significantly less each subsequent year, as the number of eligible residents requesting grab bars would decline since many grab bars would have already been installed; and

Whereas, Once grab bars are properly installed, they continue to stay in place for many years, requiring almost no cost or effort to maintain, and thus can be useful tools in helping to prevent accidents and in saving the City and State money that would otherwise be spent in treating such accidents; and

Whereas, In 2004, Senate Bill S.7630 and Assembly Bill A.11706, both of which would allow the City the option of providing real property tax credits to owners of multiple unit dwellings for the purchase and installation of grab bars in units occupied by senior citizens or persons with physical needs who qualify, were introduced at the request of the New York City Council; and

Whereas, An owner of a multiple unit dwelling should not have to solely bear the financial burden of installing grab bars; now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls for the re-introduction and adoption of State Senate Bill S.7360 and State Assembly Bill A.11706, which would allow the City to provide tax credits to landlords of multiple dwelling residences who provide grab bars for senior citizen and disabled tenants who live in such dwellings.

 

KS

LS #730

5/11/06