Lease agreements concerning storefront premises.

This bill would establish protections for tenants of storefront premises through a “Storefront Business Bill of Rights.” For any tenancy of more than one year, the bill would require a written lease for storefront premises. In addition, the bill provides for lease renewal procedures and the option to extend the lease in certain cases for up to one year with not more than a ten percent rent increase. The bill would further require an owner to provide a tenant with relevant information about the storefront premises to be leased. The bill would permit a court to impose civil penalties and award damages, equitable relief, attorneys’ fees and court costs for failure to comply with these requirements. The Commissioner of Small Business Services would oversee administration of the bill’s lease requirements and would also be required to make available online model commercial leases for storefront premises, as well as translations of such leases in other languages.