WAM- Capitol Highlights, January 2002

Capitol Highlights, January 2002
By Debra Carlton, CAA Legislative Division

NEW LAWS COMING YOUR WAY IN 2002

Leaders of the California Apartment Association worked diligently this year to impact the rental housing legislation that went to the Governor's Desk. Members of the California Apartment Association participated in the process through letter writing campaigns and telephone calls to Legislators and the Governor. These calls and letters had a tremendous impact on the final legislation that went to the Governor. Proposed legislation that would have significantly hampered the operations of rental property owners throughout the state was significantly watered-down or eliminated all together. Here's a look at the new laws that may directly or indirectly impact your business in 2002.

OWNER-TENANT PROCEDURES
Disclosure Information: Owners or their agents must provide tenants with the telephone number of the location at which the tenant may make rental payments and provide other legal documents. Owners must also tell tenants in what form rental payments will be accepted (cash, check, money order, etc.), and the usual hours at which the owner or the agent is available to accept the rent. All leases and 3-day Notices to Pay or Quit must contain this information. The California Apartment Association's Forms Task Force is now updating the Association's statewide forms. Make sure you log on to CAA's website in December for free updated forms (www.caanet.org>>> Online Services- Login) and to find out more information about SB 985 (go to www.caanet.org>>>Legislative Center). (Chapter 729; Stats 2001)

60-Day Notices: For the next three years, owners in Los Angeles, Santa Monica, and West Hollywood who wish to terminate a tenancy must provide a 60-day notice to a tenant who has lived at the property for one year or longer. (SB 985; Chapter 729; Stats 2001). As initially introduced, this legislation would have required all rental property owners in the state to provide tenants with a 90-day notice prior to terminating a tenancy. Members of the California Apartment Association wrote hundreds of letters to legislators, which eventually lead to the elimination of these provisions from the bill.

ENVIRONMENTAL
Mold Hazards: The State Department of Health Services will convene a task force comprised of various individuals, including, but not limited to, rental property owners, insurers, builders, and managers, to develop standards for assessment and remediation of molds in indoor environments.
Six months after these guidelines are complete, rental property owners who know or have reasonable cause to believe that mold is present in the unit and that the mold exceeds any exposure limits established by the Department, must disclose this fact to the tenants. Owners will also be required to provide tenants with a consumer-oriented booklet six months after the Department has developed it. (SB 732; Chapter 584; Stats 2001). While the general provisions of this law will probably not impact owners in 2001, the California Apartment Association has developed Mold Guidelines to help owners address questions posed by tenants and to identify and eliminate any mold that may exist at the property. The California Apartment Association has also developed a Question and Answer background sheet on this new law. Go to CAA's website at www.caanet.org>>What's New for your copy.

SUBSTANDARD HOUSING & DRUG ACTIVITY
Registration: Owners of multiunit residential property in Los Angeles County will be required to register personal information with the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in the event that their property is deemed substandard. (AB 1112; Chapter 487; Stats 2001). As initially written, the bill would have required all rental property owners in the State of California to register their housing with a state housing agency. CAA representatives worked with the author to make substantial amendments to the bill prior to moving it to the Governor's desk.

Methamphetamine Labs— Disclosure: Owners of residential dwelling units who know, by receipt of a specified notice, or who have actual knowledge that a release of a controlled illegal substance has come to be located on or beneath the unit to give written notice to buyers and to prospective tenants prior to the execution of a sales or rental agreement. The focus of this bill is illegal drug labs, particularly methamphetamine labs, which have been identified and removed by law enforcement. (SB 189; Chapter 466; Stats 2001)

Drug Activity— Evictions: This law extends a current pilot project in Los Angeles for another three years. The law allows the Los Angeles city attorney to file an action for unlawful detainer against any tenant who is unlawfully engaged in a drug offense. The pilot project establishes a partial eviction option. If good cause can be shown, a judge can order some tenants (not all) evicted from the premises. (AB 815; Chapter 431; Stats 2001)

PROPERTY RIGHTS AND CONSTRUCTION
Local Planning: CAA sponsored this new law, which is as much about property rights as it is about providing housing for our citizens. Under the provisions of the law, if land is already zoned for multi-family housing, local officials cannot pass an ordinance stopping a property owner from building on that land unless the local leaders make very specific findings about the adverse impacts of the development. CAA sponsored this legislation after finding that local governments were spending much time developing "quick fix" regulations, such as rent control ordinances and extended notice requirements, to address low vacancy rates. At the same time, CAA members faced local laws that prohibit the construction of new housing. (SB 1098; Chapter 939; Stats 2001)