There ought to be a law requiring landlords to inform prospective tenants that they may be moving into an apartment invested with blood sucking parasites—and Assemblymember Linda B. Rosenthal agrees. She's pushing legislation that would "grant prospective tenants and homeowners the right to a record of any bedbug infestation history within the property in question." Which would be appreciated, because bedbugs are appallingly resilient. Some species can live up to a year between feedings if necessary, and just when you think you've gotten rid of them, they paratroop down onto your bedfrom the ceiling for a refill.
"As the scourge of bedbugs continues in New York, I am committed to giving my constituents the tools to protect themselves both epidemiologically and financially from this plague," said Assemblymember Rosenthal... in a Facebook post. (Seriously.) The bill would require landlords to disclose bedbug history dating back five years.
A previous version of the bill required bedbug disclosure with apartment sales too, but a spokesperson tells Brick Underground that was amended to make it easier to pass. And a second bill proposed by Rosenthal would give bedbug victims a $750 tax credit to help with the cost of recovering from an infestation. Neither bill is scheduled for a vote at this time, because Albany lawmakers are currently too busy not passing a budget.
