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CA:RMM:lld084b/hpc
City Council Meeting 6-24-86
Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 1374(CCS)
(City Council series)
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SANTA MONICA ADDING CHAPTER 8B
TO ARTICLE IV OF THE SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL
CODE RELATING TO TENANT RELOCATION ASSISTANCE
AND DECLARING THE PRESENCE OF AN EMERGENCY
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Chapter aB is hereby added to Article IV of the
Santa Monica Municipal Code to read as follows:
CHAPTER 8B. TENANT RELOCATION ASSISTANCE.
Section 4850.
Definitions.
For
purposes of this Chapter, the following
words and phrases shall have the following
meaning:
(a) Disabled Person. Any person who
is receiving benefits from a Federal,
state, or local government, or from a
private entity on account of a permanent
disability that prevents the person from
engaging in regular, full-time employment.
(b) Displaced Tenant.
Any tenant
who vacates a rental housing unit in the
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City for any of the reasons set forth in
Section 4851.
(c) Landlord.
Any owner, lessor,
sublessor, or any other person entitled to
receive rent for the use and occupancy of
a rental housing unit, or any agent,
representative or successor of any of the
foregoing.
(d)
Rental
Housing unit.
A
housing unit in the City of Santa Monica
including a room in a single family home,
hotel or motel, roominghouse or apartment,
single family home, mobile home or mobile
home space, trailer or trailer space,
offered for rent. "Rental housing unit"
does not include any uni t occupied
pursuant
to
an
innkeeper-guest
relationship.
(e) Senior citizen. Any person
sixty-two (62) years of age or older.
(f) Tenant. Any tenant, subtenant
lessee, sublessee, or any other person
occupying a rental housing unit pursuant
to a rental housing agreement.
section 4851. When Relocation Fee
Required. A relocation fee shall be paid
in accordance with the provisions of this
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Chapter by any landlord who terminates a
tenancy for any of the following reasons:
(a) The landlord seeks to withdraw
all rental housing units from the rental
housing market as provided in Government
Code section 7060 et ~eq.
(b) The landlord seeks to recover
possession of a rental housing unit
pursuant to section l806(h) or section
l80G(i) of the City Charter.
(c) The landlord seeks to recover
possession to demolish or otherwise remove
a rental housing unit from residential
rental housing use after having obtained
all proper permits from the city.
The fee required by this Chapter
shall be due and payable to a displaced
tenant whether or not the landlord
actually utilizes the rental housing unit
for the purposes stated in the notice of
eviction.
section 4852.
Notice to Tenants
Beinq Displaced. Any notice to terminate
a tenancy which is served upon tenants for
any of the reasons set forth in section
4851 shall be accompanied by the following
on the form provided by the City:
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(a) A wri tten statement of the
rights and obligations of tenants and
landlords under this Chapter.
(b) A written statement informing
the tenants that the required relocation
fee has been placed in an escrow account
or other account approved by the city.
(c) A written statement that the
landlord has complied with Section 4854.
If the landlord has complied with section
4854 by obtaining City approval of a
Displacement Plan, a copy of the
Displacement Plan shall accompany the
written statement.
section 4853. Amount of Relocation
Fee. The amount of relocation fee payable
pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter
shall be determined as follows:
(a) The relocation fee shall be
determined according to the size of the
rental housing unit as follows:
Housincr unit size Relocation Fee
Bachelor or Single
One Bedroom
Two or More Bedrooms
$2,000.00
$2,500.00
$3,000.00
(b) If the rental housing unit from
which the tenant is being evicted is
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furnished, $250.00 shall be deducted from
the amount set forth in subdivision (a) of
this section. For purposes of this
subdivision, a rental housing unit shall
be considered to be furnished if the
landlord has provided substantial
furnishings in each occupied room of the
rental housing unit.
(c) If one or more of the displaced
tenants is a senior citizen or disabled
person, or is a tenant with whom a minor
child resides, who occupied the rental
housing unit on or before the effective
date of this Chapter, an additional $1,000
shall be added to the amount set forth in
subdivision (a) of this section.
section 4854. Additional Fee for
Required Counseling.
(a) For each rental housing unit
from which tenants are displaced for any
of the reasons set forth in section 4851,
prior to service of a notice to terminate
tenancy, the landlord shall pay a fee to
the City in the amount of $250.00 to be
used by City to pay for counseling or
other assistance required by displaced
tenants as a result of displacement.
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(b) In lieu of the fee required by
subdivision
(a)
of this
section,
a
landlord may prepare a Displacement Plan
which must be approved by the community
and Economic Development Department prior
to service of a notice to terminate
tenancy.
The Displacement Plan shall
identify the
special
needs
of
the
displaced tenants, identify the types of
assistance that will be provided and
include a commitment to pay for any such
assistance. At the time of submitting the
Displacement Plan to the city for review
and approval, the landlord shall pay a fee
to the City for such review and approval
in the amount of $100.00 for each rental
housing unit.
Section 4855. DeDosit of Relocation
Fee into Escrow.
(a) The relocation fee required by
this Chapter shall be placed in an escrow
account prior to service upon any tenant
of a notice to terminate tenancy for one
of the reasons set forth in section 4851.
All costs of an escrow opened pursuant to
the provisions of this section shall be
borne by the landlord.
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(b) The escrow instructions shall
provide that monies deposited in the
escrow account shall only be distributed
to displaced tenants in accordance wi th
the instructions of the landlord and that
no monies deposited in escrow may be
returned to the landlord without the
written approval of the city.
(c) In lieu of deposit of the
relocation fee in an escrow account, a
landlord may deposit the fee in another
account approved by the city.
Section 4856. Payment to Displaced
Tenants.
(a) within two days of the written
request by the tenant, the landlord shall
deliver written instructions to the escrow
holder to distribute all or a portion of
the relocation fee to a third party
providing moving or replacement housing to
the tenant. The instructions shall direct
the escrow holder to make the distribution
within three days of delivery of the
instructions.
(b) within two days of the vacation
of the rental housing unit, the landlord
shall deliver written instruction to the
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escrow holder to distribute the amount of
the remaining relocation fee to the
displaced tenant or displaced tenants of
such
rental
housing
unit.
The
instructions shall direct the escrow
holder to make the distribution within
three
days
of
delivery
of
the
instructions.
(c) The entire fee shall be paid to
a tenant who is the only displaced tenant
in a rental housing unit. If a rental
housing unit is occupied by two or more
displaced tenants, the relocation fee
shall be paid to all displaced tenants
jointly. In no event shall a landlord be
liable to pay a total amount more than the
fee required by Section 4853 of this
Chapter for one rental housing unit, and
the landlord shall have no responsibility
or liability for disputes between
displaced tenants over allocation of the
relocation fee between such displaced
tenants.
(d) In the event the landlord is
required to commence a legal action to
recover possession of the rental housing
unit, the landlord may instruct the escrow
holder to withhold from distribution to
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the displaced tenant or displaced tenants
of such rental housing unit the amount of
any unsatisfied monetary jUdgment entered
in such action in favor of the landlord.
Upon the judgment becoming final, the city
shall authorize the escrow holder to
return to
the
landlord
the
amount
withheld.
section 4857.
In Lieu of Fee.
Ca) In lieu of the relocation fee
Physical Relocation
required by Sections 4853 and 4854, the
landlord may, at the landlord's option,
relocate the displaced tenant into a
comparable replacement housing unit
satisfactory to the tenant, in which event
the landlord shall be liable only for the
actual costs of relocating the tenant,
except
that
this section shall not
abrogate any rights already created by
Section 1806 (h) (2) of the city Charter.
A tenant shall not unreasonably wit.hhold
approval of a comparable replacement
rental housing unit offered by the
landlord. For purposes of this section, a
replacement unit shall be comparable to
the existing unit if both units are
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comparable in size,
price,
location,
proximity to medical and recreational
facilities,
parks,
community centers,
shops, transportation, schools, churches
and synagogues, amenities, and if the
tenant desires, location of the rental
unit in the city of Santa Monica.
(b) If a tenant displaced for the
reason set forth in section 4851(b),
elects to occupy a non-comparable vacant
unit on the same property from which that
tenant is being displaced, pursuant to the
terms set forth in Section 1806(h) of the
City Charter, in lieu of the relocation
fee required by Sections 4853 and 4854,
the landlord shall only be liable for the
actual costs of relocating the tenant.
Section 4858. Remedies.
(a) In any action by a landlord to
recover possession of a rental housing
unit for one of the reasons set forth in
Section 4851, the landlord shall allege
and prove compliance with this Chapter.
(b) Any landlord who fails to
provide monetary relocation assistance as
required by sections 4853, 4854, and 4856,
of this Chapter shall be liable in a civil
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action to the tenant to whom such
assistance is due for damages in the
amount of the relocation fee the landlord
has failed to pay, a civil penalty in the
amount
of
$500.00,
and
reasonable
attorney's fees and costs as determined by
the court.
(c) Any person violating any of the
provisions or failing to comply with the
requirements of this Chapter shall be
guilty of a misdemeanor.
(d) No landlord shall attempt to
secure from a tenant any waiver of any
provision of this Chapter. Any agreement,
whether written or oral, whereby any
provision of this Chapter is waived, shall
be deemed against public policy and shall
be void.
section 4859.
Relocation Due to
Necessary Code Enforcement.
If
a
landlord is required to recover possession
of a rental housing unit in order to
comply with local housing, health, or
safety laws, or if a tenant is required to
vacate a unit upon the order of any
government officer or agency, the landlord
shall be responsible for the reasonable
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cost of temporary accommodations for the
displaced tenant necessitated by such
recovery of possession until such time as
the tenant is restored to possession. In
the event that the tenancy of such person
is subsequently terminated for one of the
reasons set forth in Section 4 8 5~ , the
landlord shall pay the relocation fee
required by Sections 4853 and 4854 and the
landlord shall have no further obligation
for temporary accommodations under this
Section.
Section
4860.
Applicability of
Relocation Assistance Requirements as
Provided in this Chapter.
(a)
The relocation
assistance
requirements set forth in this Chapter
shall apply to any tenant in possession of
a rental housing unit on or after the
effective date of this Chapter, including
any tenant who has been served wi th a
notice to terminate tenancy for one of the
reasons set forth in Section 485l prior to
the effective date of this Chapter.
(b) The landlord shall comply with
the requirements contained in Sections
4852, 4854, and 4855 within five days of
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the effective date of this Chapter in the
event that a notice to terminate tenancy
for one of the reasons set forth in
section 4851 has been served on a tenant
prior to the effective date of this
Chapter.
(c) Nothing in this Chapter shall
limi t the amount of the relocation fee
that the City council may require under
Government Code Section 65863.7.
section 4861.
Inapplicability of
Chanter to Certain Evictions.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 4860,
the requirements set forth in this Chapter
shall not apply to any tenant whose
tenancy is terminated pursuant to a lawful
notice to terminate tenancy pursuant to
Section 1806(h) of the City Charter served
on or before June 10, 1986.
(b) section 4859 shall not be
applicable if the displacement and
relocation of the tenant is the result of
a fire not caused by the landlord,
earthquake, or other natural disaster.
Section 4862.
Coordination with
other Relocation Requirements. In the
event that a landlord is required by any
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other
governmental
body
to
provide
relocation benefi ts to a tenant who
receives a notice to terminate tenancy for
one of the reasons set forth in section
4851,
such benefits shall be offset
against the amount of relocation benefits
required by section 4853 .
This Chapter
shall not apply to any relocation plan
approved by agreement by the Rent Control
Board on or before June 24, 1986.
SECTION 2. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal
Code or appendices thereto inconsistent with the provisions of
this ordinance, to the extent of such inconsistencies and no
further, are hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary
to affect the provisions of this ordinance.
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause,
or phrase of this ordinance is for any reason held to be invalid
or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent
jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portions of the ordinance. The City Council hereby
declares that it would have passed this ordinance and each and
every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
declared invalid or unconstitutional wi thout regard to whether
any portion of the ordinance would be subsequently declared
invalid or unconstitutional.
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SECTION 4. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall
attest to the passage of this ordinance. The City Clerk shall
cause the same to be published once in the official newspaper
within 15 days after its adoption.
SECTION 5. Pursuant to City Charter section 619(d), this
ordinance shall take effect and be in full force immediately
after the passage and adoption thereof.
SECTION 6. This ordinance is declared to be an emergency
measure adopted pursuant to the provisions of City Charter
Section 615 and is necessary for preserving the public peace,
health, and safety. The urgency for its adoption is so that the
relocation assistance requirements take effect by July 1, 1986,
the effective date of the Ellis Act, Government Code section 7060
et seq. The Ellis Act, if upheld by the courts, could
effectively render portions of City Charter Section 1806 invalid
or unenforceable, thereby subverting the eviction protections
otherwise provided by the Rent Control Law. If landlords attempt
to exercise the rights they claim are conferred upon them in the
Ellis Act, an undetermined number of Santa Monica tenants could
receive notices to terminate tenancy beginning July 1, 1986,
resul ting in a serious hardship and housing emergency. The
assistance that this ordinance requires landlords to provide to
tenants subject to eviction due to no fault of their own is vital
to the ability of those displaced tenants to find replacement
housing. The failure to provide relocation benefits could result
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in tenants being left homeless, greatly increasing demands on
already limited social services in the city.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
~~.
ROBERT M. MYERS
City Attorney
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Adopted and approved this 24th day of June, 1986.
el ~~) I2-Jl
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/ Mayor
I hereby certi fy that the foregoIng OrdInance No. 1374 (CCS)
was duly and regularly lntroduced at a meetIng of the City
CouncIl on the 24th day of June 1986; that the saId Ordinance was
thereafter duly adopted at a meeting of the City Council on the
24th day of June 1986 by the following Council vote:
Ayes: Councilmembers:
Conn, Epstein, Jennings, A. Katz,
H. Katz, Zane and Mayor Reed
Noes: Councilmembers:
None
AbstaIn: Councilmembers:
None
Absent: Councilmembers:
None
ATTEST:
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