On March 9, 2021, Governor Cuomo signed the COVID-19 Emergency Protect Our Small Business Act of 2021 establishing eviction and foreclosure protections for small businesses who have suffered COVID related hardships, which expands on commercial eviction and foreclosure protections already in place. The Act also will help protect small businesses who are delinquent on taxes.
“New York has gone to extraordinary lengths to protect and strengthen our economy throughout the war on COVID, and it is critical that we continue to provide support as we ramp up our vaccination efforts across the state,” Governor Cuomo said. “By signing the COVID-19 Emergency Protect Our Small Business Act of 2021 we are strengthening the backbone of our economy – our small businesses that have faced unprecedented hardships – and this legislation will be instrumental in helping build New York’s economy back better than ever before.”
The new legislation will apply to small businesses with under 50 employees, as well as small businesses with 10 or less units. It will allow these small business tenants, as well as commercial mortgagors to declare to either a landlord or mortgagee that they have experienced a financial hardship and thus qualify for protections under this Act.
If you are a commercial tenant or facing a foreclosure on your small business due to delinquent mortgage payments or taxes, please call our office for more information, 914-472-6202. We are here to help you through this difficult time.