At least one prominent New York Republican politician has pledged to do away with anachronistic rent controls there -- which economists say have long distorted real estate markets in New York City and elsewhere in the state.

• About one million apartments in New York City are subject to rent stabilization regulations -- with an additional 60,000 in the city's suburbs.

• Rent control covers another 100,000 units in the city and 15,000 in the suburbs.

• Each sets a maximum rent for an apartment and limits annual increases -- with controls generally being more restrictive than stabilization regulations.

State Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said that if Democratic assembly leaders don't work with him to phase out rent regulation, he will allow current rent laws to expire next June 15.

• Under Sen. Bruno's plan, any unit that became vacant after June 15 would be completely decontrolled and landlords would be free to charge whatever the market would bear.

• Luxury decontrol -- which applies to any apartment renting for $2,000 a month or more whose occupants have annual incomes of more than $250,000 for two consecutive years -- would be expanded.

• And all units would be decontrolled in 1999, or when their leases expired, whichever came later.

• Protections for the low-income elderly and disabled would remain.

Other prominent Republicans, however, are weak to absent in their support of Sen. Bruno's efforts. Gov. George E. Pataki has registered unease with an outright abolition of rent regulation and NYC Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has said that he supports the current system.

Since Sen. Bruno's political strategy is simply to block any extension of the current law and let it "sunset" next year, he points out that he does not need the support of the Senate, the Assembly or the Governor. "When a law sunsets, it sunsets all by itself," he says.

Source: Richard Perez-Pena, "Senate Leader Urges End to New York's Rent Laws," New York Times, December 6, 1996.