Former Mayor Adams’ Veto of the COPA Bill Stands

During the final day in office as New York City’s mayor, Eric Adams reportedly vetoed several bills, including the Community Opportunity to Purchase Act (COPA), which would have given city-approved nonprofits and joint ventures between qualified nonprofits and other entities the first opportunity to purchase certain distressed or soon-to-expire affordability-required multifamily buildings. To overturn the veto, the city council needed 34 votes for a supermajority in favor of enacting Introduction 902-B (COPA) into law but failed to secure the votes within the 30-day deadline due to some supporters reportedly dropping off amid constitutional issues raised by the city’s law department. Upon vetoing the bill, former Mayor Adams indicated it would “restrict the pool of potential buyers of certain buildings and created ‘significant operational and administrative challenges’ for city agencies” according to the press release by The Real Deal; and landlord groups considered the measure as “an unconstitutional intrusion into private deals.”  Although off the table for now, the city council could still move forward with another version of the bill, some critics suggested the launch of a pilot program to test out the policy.

Source:    https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2026/01/26/city-council-doesnt-have-votes-to-overturn-copa/

Source:     https://therealdeal.com/new-york/2025/12/31/eric-adams-vetoes-copa/