Bill Text: CA AB3352 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: State Housing Law: enforcement response to complaints.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2020-07-01 - Referred to Com. on HOUSING. [AB3352 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB3352-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  May 04, 2020

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 3352

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Introduced by Assembly Member Friedman

February 21, 2020

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An act to amend Section 1942 of the Civil Code, relating to real property. An act to add Section 17970.5 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to building standards.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 3352, as amended, Friedman. Hiring of real property: tenant remedies. State Housing Law: enforcement response to complaints.

Existing law, the State Housing Law, a violation of which is a crime, establishes statewide construction and occupancy standards for buildings used for human habitation. Existing law authorizes a city or county to designate and charge a specified department or officer with the enforcement of the State Housing Law, the building standards published in the California Building Standards Code, or any other rules and regulations adopted pursuant to the State Housing Law for the protection of the public health, safety, and general welfare.

Existing law deems a building, portion of a building, or premises on which a building is located to be a substandard building if any one of specified conditions exists to the extent that it endangers the life, limb, health, property, safety, or welfare of the public or its occupants. Existing law deems a building, portion of a building, or premises on which a building is located to be in violation of the State Housing Law if it contains lead hazards, as specified, that are likely to endanger the health of the public or the occupants.

This bill would require a city or county that receives a complaint of a substandard building or a lead hazard violation, as described above, from a tenant, resident, or occupant, or an agent of a tenant, resident, or occupant, to inspect the building, portion of the building intended for human occupancy, or premises of the building, cite the lead hazard violations or the building, portion of the building intended for human occupancy, or premises on which the building is located as being substandard, as applicable, and provide free copies of the inspection report and citations issued, if any, to the tenant, resident, occupant, or agent, and to all potentially affected tenants, residents, occupants, or the agents of those individuals, as specified. The bill would prohibit a city or county from placing any condition on either the inspection or the citation, as specified. The bill would prohibit a city or county from refusing to communicate with a tenant, resident, occupant, or agent regarding a matter covered by this bill.

By imposing new duties on local government officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons.

Existing law authorizes a tenant, if the landlord fails to make repairs on dilapidations that make the premises untenantable, after giving notice to a landlord or landlord’s agent, to make the repairs themselves within a reasonable time if the cost does not require expenditure of more than one month’s rent and to deduct the expenses from the rent when due, or instead to vacate the premises.

This bill would instead authorize a tenant in the above circumstances to make the repairs themselves within a reasonable time if the cost of the repairs does not require expenditure of more than two month’s rent.

Existing law provides that if a tenant acts to repair and deduct their expenses after the 30th day following notice, the tenant is presumed to have acted after a reasonable time.

The bill would revise the above timeframe to the 15th day following notice.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: NOYES   Local Program: NOYES  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Section 17970.5 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

17970.5.

 (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, a city or county that receives a complaint from a tenant, resident, or occupant, or an agent of a tenant, resident, or occupant, regarding a potential violation of Section 17920.10 or regarding a building being substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3 shall, at least as promptly as that city or county conducts an inspection in response to an application for a residential building permit, do all of the following:

(1) Inspect the building or portion thereof intended for human occupancy, including any dwelling unit, guestroom, or suite of rooms, or the premises on which it is located, that may be in violation of Section 17920.10 or that may be substandard pursuant to Section 17920.3.

(2) Cite any violations of Section 17920.10 and cite the building or portion thereof intended for human occupancy, including any dwelling unit, guestroom, or suite of rooms, or the premises on which it is located, as being deemed substandard pursuant Section 17920.3, as applicable.

(3) Provide free copies of the inspection report and citations issued, if any, to the complaining tenant, resident, occupant, or their agent. If inspection reveals a condition potentially affecting multiple tenants, residents, or occupants, including, but not limited to, conditions relating to the premises, common areas, or structural features, then the city or county shall provide free copies of the inspection report and citations issued to all potentially affected tenants, residents, occupants, or their agents.

(b) A city or county shall not place any conditions on either the inspection or the citation required by subdivision (a), including, but not limited to, requirements that:

(1) The tenant, resident, occupant, or agent first make a demand for correction upon the owner of the property.

(2) The tenant be current on rent.

(3) The tenant otherwise be in compliance with their rental agreement.

(4) The tenant, resident, or occupant not be involved in a legal dispute with the owner of the property.

(c) A city or county shall not refuse to communicate with a tenant, resident, occupant, or the agent of a tenant, resident, or occupant regarding any matter covered by this section.

SEC. 2.

 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because a local agency or school district has the authority to levy service charges, fees, or assessments sufficient to pay for the program or level of service mandated by this act, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, and because the only other costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district under this act would result from a legislative mandate that is within the scope of paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution.

SECTION 1.Section 1942 of the Civil Code is amended to read:

1942.

(a)If within a reasonable time after written or oral notice to the landlord or the landlord’s agent, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 1962, of dilapidations rendering the premises untenantable that the landlord ought to repair, the landlord neglects to do so, the tenant may make the repair themselves if the cost of the repairs does not require an expenditure more than two month’s rent of the premises and deduct the expenses of the repairs from the rent when due, or the tenant may vacate the premises, in which case the tenant shall be discharged from further payment of rent, or performance of other conditions as of the date of vacating the premises. This remedy shall not be available to the tenant more than twice in any 12-month period.

(b)For the purposes of this section, if a tenant acts to repair and deduct after the 15th day following notice, the tenant is presumed to have acted after a reasonable time. The presumption established by this subdivision is a rebuttable presumption affecting the burden of producing evidence and shall not be construed to prevent a tenant from repairing and deducting after a shorter notice if all the circumstances require shorter notice.

(c)The tenant’s remedy under subdivision (a) shall not be available if the condition was caused by the violation of Section 1929 or 1941.2.

(d)The remedy provided by this section is in addition to any other remedy provided by this chapter, the rental agreement, or other applicable statutory or common law.