2A:18-61.1a. Findings

The Legislature finds that:

a. Acute State and local shortages of supply and high levels of demand for residential dwellings have motivated removal of blameless tenants in order to directly or indirectly profit from conversion to higher income rental or ownership interest residential use.

b. This has resulted in unfortunate attempts to displace tenants employing pretexts, stratagems or means other than those provided pursuant to the intent of State eviction laws designated to fairly balance and protect rights of tenants and landlords.

c. These devices have circumvented the intent of current State eviction laws by failing to utilize available means to avoid displacement, such as: protected tenancies; rights to purchase; rent affordability protection; full disclosures relevant to eviction challenges; and stays of eviction where relocation is lacking.

d. It is in the public interest of the State to maintain for citizens the broadest protections available under State eviction laws to avoid such displacement and resultant loss of affordable housing, which, due to housing's uniqueness as the most costly and difficult to change necessity of life, causes overcrowding, unsafe and unsanitary conditions, blight, burdens on community services, wasted resources, homelessness, emigration from the State and personal hardship, which is particularly severe for vulnerable seniors, the disabled, the frail, minorities, large families and single parents.

e. Such personal hardship includes, but is not limited to: economic loss, time loss, physical and emotional stress, and in some cases severe emotional trauma, illness, homelessness or other irreparable harm resulting from strain of eviction controversy; relocation search and moving difficulties; anxiety caused by lack of information, uncertainty, and resultant planning difficulty; employment, education, family and social disruption; relocation and empty unit security hazards; relocation to premises of less affordability, capacity, accessibility and physical or environmental quality; and relocation adjustment problems, particularly of the blind or other disabled citizens.

f. It is appropriate to take legislative notice of relevant legislative findings adopted pursuant to section 2 of the "Senior Citizens and Disabled Protected Tenancy Act," P.L. 1981, c. 226 (C. 2A:18-61.23) and section 2 of the "Prevention of Homelessness Act (1984)," P.L. 1984, c. 180 (C. 52:27D-281), which, with the findings of this section, have relevance to this 1986 amendatory and supplementary act and P.L. 1974, c. 49 (C. 2A:18-61.1 et seq.).

g. This 1986 amendatory and supplementary act is adopted in order to protect the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of New Jersey.

L. 1986, c. 138, s. 10, eff. Oct. 29, 1986.