This New York legislative session will differ from the last two under Gov. Kathy Hochul in a couple of ways. It’s an election year, which means lawmakers may not be willing to cut spending; and ironically, instead of surpluses (thanks to federal spending and tax revenue), the state faces a $4.3 billion budget gap. 

But state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins says she has a positive outlook, even on the contentious issue of affordable housing.

“We are going to continue the conversation around housing because we know affordable housing is critical,” she told Capital Tonight in an interview. “And, of course, as part of that, we always said we need to have tenant protections that look at some of the principles of good cause.”

Last session, the governor and Legislature failed twice to pass housing legislation, blaming each other in the process.

But lawmakers, including Stewart-Cousins’ deputy, Sen. Mike Gianaris, are hopeful that this year will bring about “a grand bargain” which could include “Good Cause Eviction," a bill that lawmakers have demanded, in exchange for new tax incentives for developers, similar to 421a.

According to her spokesman, when Stewart-Cousins discusses “the principles of good cause,” she is referring to the Good Cause Eviction bill, although the parameters of that bill are subject to change during negotiations.

Currently, New York's “Good Cause Eviction” bill would require landlords to offer new leases to most market-rate tenants. It would, in effect, prohibit landlords from ending a tenancy, except in cases where a tenant fails to pay rent or violates the lease. 

New Jersey, California and Oregon have already implemented various versions of good cause eviction, as have several cities in New York state, including Albany, Beacon, Kingston, Newburgh and Poughkeepsie. 

According to Governing Magazine, landlord and real estate groups argue that good cause policies “could make the housing shortage worse by pushing some (landlords) to stop offering rentals.”

It's a criticism that seems to have resonated with Hochul, who has made it clear that the state needs to increase housing supply by 800,000 units of housing. Reading between the lines, her position on the grand bargain — Good Cause Eviction in exchange for a tax break for developers — would fundamentally underestimate the need for more housing supply. 

But this thorny issue has been successfully tackled in the past. 

Stewart-Cousins sees a model in a comprehensive plan developed almost 70 years ago by state Sen. MacNeil Mitchell and Assemblyman Alfred Lama.

“Sen. Mitchell, Assemblymember Lama in 1955 put together a plan that would ensure affordability for generations to come,” Stewart-Cousins said. “The need is no less great now than it was then.”

According to the Furman Center at NYU, the Mitchell-Lama program has subsidized the construction of 269 developments, including over 105,000 apartments for middle-income households. 

The program places income limits on tenants in exchange for low interest mortgage loans, and property tax exemptions for developers.  Mitchell-Lama housing also requires ongoing supervision by either the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development or New York State Homes and Community Renewal. 

You can find more on that here.

“We want to incentivize the building of affordable housing and we want to keep people in their homes if we can. I think that everybody is willing to look at how we accomplish those things,” Stewart-Cousins said.

The governor’s State of the State address is Tuesday, Jan. 9.