SR-073096-8-CL
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City Council Meeting 7-30--96
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: City Attorney
Santa Monica, California
~ u ~ s o ~sss
SUBJECT: Proposed Emergency Ordinance Amending Chapter 4.56
of the Santa Monica Municipal Code Prohibiting
Tenant Harassment
Introduction
At its meeting of July 23, 1996, the City Council directed legal
staff to prepare an urgency ordinance amending Chapter 4.56 of the
Municipal Code which prohibits harassment of tenants residing in
controlled rental units within the City, Council specified that
the amendments should incorporate those changes to the tenant
harassment law which were discussed at the July 23rd meeting in the
context of Council deliberations on a proposed City Charter
amendment which would have moved the harassment law into the City
Charter and made certain substantive modifications strengthening
the law. The attached urgency ordinance fulfills the Council's
directive.
Discussion
In summary, the proposed urgency ordinance would: (1) change the
intent requirement of the tenant harassment law by eliminating the
requirement of showing intent to cause a tenant to vacate a
controlled rental unit, substituting malice as the requisite
intent; (2) add to the list of prohibited conduct a prohibitiorn-
against interfering with a tenant's right to quiet use ~~~ ~ ~ ~~
enjoyment of a controlled rental unit;l (3) expand the scope of the
anti-discrimination clause of the harassment law to include, among
other things, prohibitions against discrimination based on AIDS,
parenthood, occupancy by a minor child or sexual preference or
orientation; (4) add a minimum statutory damage requirement of
$500.00; and {5) prohibit the interruption or termination of
housing services and the failure to perform repairs and maintenance
required by county housing, health, or safety laws.
In addition to these changes -- which were discussed at the meeting
of July 23rd -- the Council also considered whether the
prohibition against tenant harassment should continue to be limited
to tenants residing in controlled rental units or whether it should
apply to all rental units within the City. It was not clear that
the Council reached a consensus on this issue. So, we have not
proposed any change. However, should the Council wish to resume
consideration of that issue and decide to make the prohibition more
broadly applicable, that change could be easily made at the Council
meeting.
1 The proposed language differs from the language in the„~
previously proposed charter amendment which would have prohibii~ed
the commission of anv act or failure to taerform anv_ obligation
imposed by contract or law which interfered with a tenant's right
to quiet enjoyment. We believe that the underlined language is
superfluous and have therefore deleted it from the proposed
ordinance.
Recommendation
It is respectfully recommended that the Council adapt the attached
urgency ordinance.
Prepared By: Marsha Jones Moutrie, City Attorney
Barry Rosenbaum, Deputy City Attorney
f:\atty\muni\laws\barry\tenant.ord
City Council Meeting 7-30-96 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER 1859 {CCS)
(City Council Series}
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SANTA MONICA AMENDING CHAPTER 4.56 OF THE
SANTA MONICA MUNICIPAL CODE RELATING TO
TENANT HARASSMENT AND DECLARING THE '
PRESENCE OF AN EMERGENCY
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1: Findings and Purpose. The City Council finds and
declares:
(a} At its meeting of July 23, 1996, the City Council heard
testimony from numerous City residents regarding instances of
tenant harassment occurring in the City. These residents
testified that instances of tenant harassment have been increasing
in the City since the passage of AB 1164 -- the statewide vacancy
decontrol measure. They also testified that acts of harassment
threaten tenants' well-being, their quiet enjoyment of their units,
and the stability of the community. Additionally, they expressed
concern that tenant harassment would continue to increase in
magnitude.
(b} Statistical information supplied by the Rent Control
Board staff shows that since the passage of AB 1154, controlled
rental units are being vacated at substantially higher rates.
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{c) Individual reports of tenant harassment and statistical
information on vacancy rates tend to show that the existing Tenant
Harassment Ordinance, Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 4.56,010
et seq., does not offer an adequate mechanism to address and
prevent acts of tenant harassment.
(d) It is therefore necessary to amend the existing ordinance
to modify those provisions of the ordinance which inhibit effective
enforcement and to broaden the scope of the ordinance's
prohibitions, For the reasons set forth above, there exists a
current and immediate threat to the public health, safety, peace,
or welfare.
SECTION 2. Chapter 4.56 of the Santa Monica Municipal Code is
amended to read as follows:
4.5G.010 Definitions.
The following wards or phrases as used in this
Chapter shall have the following meanings:
{a) Fraud. Intentianalmisrepresentation, deceit or
concealment of a material fact.
(b) Housing Service. Housing services include, but
are not limited to, hot and cold water, heat,
electricity, gas, refrigeration, elevator service, window
shades and screens, storage, kitchen, bath and laundry
facilities and privileges, janitor services, refuse
removal, furnishings, telephone, parking, effective
waterproofing and weather protection, painting, and any
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other benefit, privilege or facility that has been
provided by the landlord to the tenant with use or
occupancy of any rental housing unit. Services to a
rental housing unit shall include a proportionate part of
services provided to common facilities of the building in
which the rental housing unit is contained.
(c} Landlord. An owner, lessor, sublessor, or any
other person entitled to receive rent for the use and
occupancy of any rental housing unit, or an agent,
representative or successor of any of the foregoing.
{d} Malice. An intent to vex, annoy, ar injure
another person.
(e} Rental Housing Agreement. An agreement, oral or
written or implied, between a landlord and tenant for use
or occupancy of a rental housing unit and for housing
services.
(f) Rental Housing Onit. A housing unit in the City
of Santa Monica that constitutes a controlled rental unit
pursuant to City Charter Section 1800 et seq. including
a room in a single family home, hotel or motel,
raominghouse ar apartment, single family home, mobile
home or mobile home space, trailer or trailer space.
{g} Tenant. A tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee
or any other person entitled under the terms of a rental
housing agreement to the use or occupancy of any rental
housing unit.
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4.56.020 Prohibition.
No landlord shall, with respect to property used as
a rental housing unit under any rental housing agreement
or other tenancy or estate at will, however created, do
any of the fallowing with malice:
(a) Interrupt or terminate housing services
required by contract or by State, county, or local
housing, health ar safety laws.
{b} Fail to perform repairs and maintenance
required by contract or by State, county, or local
housing, health or safety laws.
(c} Fail to exercise due diligence in completing
repairs and maintenance once undertaken.
(d) Abuse the landlord's right of access into a
rental housing unit as that right is specified in
California Civil Cade Section 1954.
{e} Abuse the tenant with words which are offensive
and inherently likely to provoke an immediate violent
reaction.
(f) Seek to entice or entice a tenant to vacate a
rental hauling unit through fraud.
(g) Threaten the tenant, by ward or gesture, with
physical harm.
(h) Violate any law which prohibits discrimination
based on race, gender, sexual preference, sexual
orientation, ethnic background, nationality, religion,
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age, parenthood, marriage, pregnancy, disability, AIDS,
or occupancy by a minor child.
(i) Take action to terminate any tenancy including
service of any notice to quit or other eviction notice or
bring any action to recover possession of a rental
housing unit based upon facts which the landlord has no
reasonable cause to believe to be true or upon a legal
theory which is untenable under the facts known to the
landlord.
This subsection shall not apply to any attorney who
in good faith initiates legal proceedings against a
tenant on behalf of a landlord to recover possession of
a rental housing unit.
(j) Interfere with a tenant's right to quiet use
and enjoyment of a rental housing unit as that right is
defined by California law.
4.56.030 Lawful evictions.
Nothing in this Section shall be construed as to
prevent the lawful eviction of a tenant by appropriate
legal means nor shall anything in this Section apply to
occupancies defined by subdivision (b} of Civil Code
Section 1940.
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4.56.040 Enforcement and penalties.
(a) Criminal Penalty. Any person who is convicted
of violating this Chapter shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished by a
fine of not greater than five hundred dollars or by
imprisonment in the County Jail for not more than six
months, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
(b) Civil Action. Any person, including the City of
Santa Monica, may enforce the provisions of this Chapter
by means of a civil action. A violation of this Chapter
may be asserted as an affirmative defense in an unlawful
detainer action.
(c) Injunction. Any person who commits an act,
proposes to commit an act, or engages in any pattern and
practice which violates Section 4.55.020 may be enjoined
therefrom by any court of competent jurisdiction. An
action for inunction under this subsection may be brought
by any aggrieved person, by the City Attorney, ar by any
person or entity who will fairly and adequately represent
the interest of the protected class.
(d) Penalties. Any person who violates or aids or
incites another person to violate the provisions of this
Chapter is liable for each and every such offense for the
actual damages suffered by any aggrieved party or for
statutory damages in the sum of Five Hundred Dollars and
Zero Cents ($500.00), whichever is greater, and shall be
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liable for such attorney's fees and casts as may be
determined by the court in addition thereto. The court
may also award punitive damages in a proper case as
defined by Civil Code Section 3294.
(e) Nonexclusive Remedies and Penalties. The
remedies provided in this Chapter are not exclusive, and
nothing in this Chapter shall preclude any person from
seeking any other remedies, penalties or procedures
provided by law.
SECTION 3. This Ordinance is declared to be an urgency
measure adopted pursuant to the provisions of Section 615 of the
Santa Monica City Charter. It is necessary far preserving the
public health, safety, peace, or welfare, and the need for its
adoption is set forth in the Findings and Purpose Section above.
SECTION 4. 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, is
hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to effect the
provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 5. 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
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remaining portions of this 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 without regard to whether any portion
of the ordinance would be subsequently declared invalid or
unconstitutional.
SECTION 6. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall
attest tv 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. This Ordinance shall become
effective upon its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
MARSHA JC3I~ES MOUTRI E
City Attorney
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Ma~-or
State of California }
Count~° of Los Angeles) ss
Cat}' of Santa Monica
I, Iv~Saria M Ste~ti~ari. City Clerl: of the Cite of Santa Monica, do hereb~~ certtfi° that the foregoing
Ordinance No 18.59 (CCS} had its first reading on 3u1~~ 30. 1996, and had its second reading on
Julti~ 30. 1996 and i~-as passed b}- the follotiring rote
Ares
woes
Council members Abdo; Ebner. Genser, Greenberg, Holbrook. O'Connor,
Rosenstein
Council members None
?abstain Council members None
Absent Council members None
ATTEST
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Cits~ Clerk
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