A5207

An Act requiring certain appliances in dwelling units and supplementing Title 2A of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. As used in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):

"Dwelling unit" means a room or connected rooms within a residential structure forming a self-contained area within or comprised of that structure and adapted to provide permanent living accommodations for a household, including the availability of heat, electricity, water, and necessary equipment for the culinary and sanitary requirements of a household of a size for which it is intended, but shall not include any unit in a hotel, motel, or other unit intended for transient or seasonal purposes, or a residential health care facility.

"Landlord" means any person who owns or controls a house, building, unit, or tenement and rents or leases, or offers to rent or lease under a written or oral lease, for a term of at least one month, to a lessee or tenant for residential purposes, but shall not include any person who rents or leases, or offers to rent or lease, any unit in a hotel, motel, or other guest house, or part thereof, or to a transient guest or seasonal tenant, or a residential health care facility.

"Tenant" means a person that leases, under a written or oral lease, for a term of at least one month, any house, building, unit, or tenement for residential purposes, but shall not include any person who leases any unit in a hotel, motel, or other guest house, or part thereof, or a transient guest or seasonal tenant, or an individual who resides at a residential health care facility.

2. Every dwelling unit made available for lease to a tenant shall contain, in order to be deemed habitable and fit for human occupation, a refrigerator in good operating condition for the protection of food from spoilage, permitting maintenance of temperatures for storage above 32 degrees and below 50 degrees without regard to outside temperature, and a stove, which, if electrical, is safely connected to an electrical system of sufficient capacity, or if gas, connected by permanent fixtures and tubing to avoid leakage of gas.

3. a. A landlord who violates any provision of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), shall be liable to a penalty of not more than $500 for each offense. Such penalty shall be collected and enforced by summary proceedings pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.). The Superior Court, Law Division, Special Civil Part in the county in which the dwelling unit is located shall have jurisdiction over such proceedings. Process shall be in the nature of a summons or warrant, and shall issue upon the complaint of the Commissioner of Community Affairs, the Attorney General, or any aggrieved tenant.

b. A landlord who violates any provision of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), may also be subject to a separate cause of action, which may be brought by the aggrieved tenant in the Superior Court, Law Division, Special Civil Part in the county in which the dwelling unit is located. The tenant may recover for the actual damage sustained by reason of such violation, including costs and reasonable attorney’s fees.

c. The commissioner shall adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L. 1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations to effectuate the provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

4. This act shall take effect on the first day of the second month next following enactment, and shall apply to a new lease agreement entered on or after that date.

STATEMENT

This bill requires that every dwelling unit made available to a residential tenant contain, in order to be deemed habitable and fit for human occupation, a refrigerator in good operating condition, and a stove, which, if electrical, is safely connected to an electrical system of sufficient capacity, or if gas, is connected by permanent fixtures and tubing to avoid leakage of gas.

This bill provides that a landlord who violates the provisions of this bill shall be subject to a penalty of not more than $500 for each offense, to be collected and enforced upon the complaint of the Commissioner of Community Affairs, the Attorney General, or any aggrieved tenant. Further, a landlord who violates the provisions of this bill may also be subject to a separate cause of action, which may be brought by the aggrieved tenant in the Superior Court, Law Division, Special Civil Part in the county in which the dwelling unit is located, who may recover for the actual damage sustained by reason of the violation, including costs and reasonable attorney’s fees.