SB 610: Disaster assistance: tenants, mobilehome parks, and mortgages.

798.64.

(a) (1) When a mobilehome tenancy is terminated due to damage or the destruction of the mobilehome park or any space as a result of a disaster, management shall return to the homeowner any advance rental payments received from the homeowner that cover any period of time after the date of the termination.

(2) Any payment required pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be made within 21 days of the date of the termination and shall be sent to the address provided by the homeowner. If the homeowner does not provide an address, mailings pursuant to this subdivision shall be sent to the address where the mobilehome was located.

(3) For purposes of this subdivision, the date of the termination shall be the date upon which the mobilehome park or the mobilehome space was damaged or destroyed.

(b) During any period that a homeowner is unable to occupy their mobilehome or mobilehome space due to a mandatory evacuation order pursuant to a disaster, the homeowner’s obligation to pay rent shall be discharged for the period during which the homeowner is required to be evacuated. If the homeowner has paid rent in advance for any portion of the evacuation period, management shall return that portion of prepaid rent to the homeowner within 10 calendar days after the evacuation order is lifted, or the homeowner may deduct that amount from the next month’s rent which becomes due and payable after the evacuation order is lifted.

(c) For purposes of this section, “disaster” means a natural or manmade emergency resulting from an earthquake, flood, fire, riot, storm, drought, plant or animal infestation or disease, pandemic or epidemic disease outbreak, or other natural or manmade disaster for which a state of emergency has been declared by the President of the United States or the Governor.

1941.8.

(a) Subject to subdivision (e), for any structure intended for human habitation, it shall be the duty of a landlord to undertake one or both of the following actions as may be necessary to remediate any dilapidations that arise as a result of a disaster:

(1) Removal of debris caused by the disaster.

(2) Mitigation of hazards arising from the disaster, including, but not limited to, the presence of mold, smoke, smoke residue, smoke odor, ash, asbestos, or water damage.

(b) Until a determination has been made by a local public health agency or official that the debris from the disaster, including, but not limited to, ash, sludge, or runoff, does not contain toxic substances, the presence of the debris at a rental unit shall be presumed to render the rental unit untenantable pursuant to Section 1941.1.

(c) The landlord shall comply with subdivision (a) within a reasonable time after the property sustains damage, and shall follow any and all cleaning protocols issued by government officials, including contracting with licensed remediation companies where required. If the tenant has provided the landlord with a postal or email address, the landlord shall notify the tenant in writing that the landlord has complied with subdivision (a) and that the tenant may view and, if requested, obtain copies of any environmental studies, testing, or reports conducted.

(d) Unless lawfully terminated by either party, the tenancy shall remain in effect and the tenant shall have the right to return to the rental unit at the same rental rate in effect immediately prior to the disaster as soon as it is safe and practicable.

(e) Nothing in this section shall require a landlord to rebuild a residential rental property or any portion thereof that has sustained damage as a result of a disaster.

(f) The rights, obligations, and remedies under this section are cumulative and in addition to any other rights, obligations, or remedies available under federal, state, or local law.

(g) Nothing in this section preempts any local ordinance from providing for additional protections for tenants or imposing additional obligations on the landlord.

(h) For purposes of this section, “disaster” means a natural or manmade emergency resulting from an earthquake, flood, fire, riot, storm, drought, plant or animal infestation or disease, pandemic or epidemic disease outbreak, or other natural or manmade disaster for which a state of emergency has been declared by the President of the United States or the Governor.

1941.9.

(a) (1) When the hiring of residential real property is terminated pursuant to paragraph (2) of Section 1932 or paragraph (4) of Section 1933, the landlord shall return to the tenant any advance rental payments made by the tenant that cover any period after the date of the termination.

(2) Any payment from the landlord to the tenant required pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be made within 21 days of the date of the termination and shall be sent to the address provided by the tenant. If the hirer does not provide an address, mailings pursuant to this subdivision shall be sent to the address of the unit that was the subject of the terminated hiring.

(3) For purposes of this subdivision, the date of the termination shall be either of the following, as applicable:

(A) The date that the tenant informs the landlord or the landlord’s agent of the tenant’s intent to terminate the hiring pursuant to paragraph (2) of Section 1932.

(B) The date that the residential real property was destroyed, if the termination happened pursuant to paragraph (4) of Section 1933.

(b) During any period during which a tenant in residential real property is unable to occupy their rental unit due to a mandatory evacuation order pursuant to a disaster, as defined in Section 1941.8, the tenant’s obligation to pay rent shall be discharged for the period during which the tenant must be evacuated. If the tenant already paid rent for the period of an evacuation, the landlord shall return the rent within 10 calendar days after the evacuation order is lifted or the tenant may deduct the amount from the next month’s rent.

338.

Upon declaration of a state of emergency, pursuant to the California Emergency Services Act (Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 8550) of Division 1 of Title 2 of the Government Code) due to a wildfire, including, but not limited to, any unplanned, unwanted wildland fire, including unauthorized human-caused fires, escaped wildland fire use events, escaped prescribed fire projects, and all other wildland fires where the objective is to extinguish the fire, the commissioner shall coordinate with mortgage lenders and servicers subject to the commissioner’s jurisdiction, including those who lend money in connection with the purchase or financing of a mobilehome as that term is defined in Section 798.3 of the Civil Code, operating in this state to facilitate and monitor the implementation and promotion of mortgage forbearance, foreclosure prevention, and loss mitigation programs available to borrowers who experience a material decrease in household income or a material increase in household expenses due, directly or indirectly, to the wildfire emergency.

65863.7.

(a) (1) (A) Prior to the conversion of a mobilehome park to another use, except pursuant to the Subdivision Map Act (Division 2 (commencing with Section 66410)), or prior to closure of a mobilehome park or cessation of use of the land as a mobilehome park, the person or entity proposing the change in use shall file a report on the impact of the conversion, closure, or cessation of use of the mobilehome park. The report shall include a replacement and relocation plan that adequately mitigates the impact upon the ability of the displaced residents of the mobilehome park to be converted or closed to find adequate housing in a mobilehome park.

(B) (i) If the proposed closure, cessation, or change of use is related to damage or destruction by a disaster, as described in subdivision (k), the impact report described in subparagraph (A) shall also include a technical service inspection report from the Department of Housing and Community Development that identifies the observed conditions within the park. Technical service has the same meaning as in Section 1002 of Title 25 of the California Code of Regulations.

(ii) For purposes of this subparagraph, management, as defined in Section 798.2 of the Civil Code, is the person or entity proposing the change in use for purposes of preparing the impact report required by this section and is required to take steps to mitigate the adverse impact of the change as may be required in subdivision (e).

(2) (A) If a displaced resident cannot obtain adequate housing in another mobilehome park, the person or entity proposing the change of use shall pay to the displaced resident the in-place market value of the displaced resident’s mobilehome.

(B) For the purposes of this paragraph, except as specified in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (e), in-place market value shall be determined by a state-certified appraiser with experience establishing the value of mobilehomes. The appraisal shall be based upon the current in-place location of the mobilehome and shall assume the continuation of the mobilehome park.

(C) The person or entity proposing the change of use shall pay for an appraisal specified in subparagraph (B) and shall include the appraisal in the report specified in paragraph (1).

(D) This paragraph shall not apply when the proposed closure, cessation, or change of use is related to damage or destruction by a disaster, as defined in Section 798.64 of the Civil Code.

(b) The person proposing the change in use shall provide a copy of the report to a resident of each mobilehome in the mobilehome park at least 60 days prior to the hearing, if any, on the impact report by the advisory agency, or if there is no advisory agency, by the legislative body.

(c) When the impact report is filed prior to the closure or cessation of use, the person or entity proposing the change shall provide a copy of the report to a resident of each mobilehome in the mobilehome park at the same time as the notice of the change is provided to the residents pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (g) of Section 798.56 of the Civil Code.

(d) When the impact report is filed prior to the closure or cessation of use, the person or entity filing the report or park resident may request, and shall have a right to, a hearing before the legislative body on the sufficiency of the report.

(e) (1) Before the approval of any change of use, the legislative body, or its delegated advisory agency, shall do all of the following:

(A) Review the report and any additional relevant documentation.

(B) Make a finding as to whether or not approval of the park closure and the park’s conversion into its intended new use, taking into consideration both the impact report as a whole and the overall housing availability within the local jurisdiction, will result in or materially contribute to a shortage of housing opportunities and choices for low- and moderate-income households within the local jurisdiction.

(2) The legislative body, or its delegated advisory agency, may require, as a condition of the change, the person or entity proposing the change in use to take steps to mitigate any adverse impact of the conversion, closure, or cessation of use on the ability of displaced mobilehome park residents to find adequate housing in a mobilehome park.

(f) If the closure or cessation of use of a mobilehome park results from the entry of an order for relief in bankruptcy, the provisions of this section shall not be applicable.

(g) The legislative body may establish reasonable fees pursuant to Section 66016 to cover any costs incurred by the local agency in implementing this section and Section 65863.8. Those fees shall be paid by the person or entity proposing the change in use.

(h) This section is applicable to charter cities.

(i) This section is applicable when the closure, cessation, or change of use is the result of a decision by a local governmental entity or planning agency not to renew a conditional use permit or zoning variance under which the mobilehome park has operated, or as a result of any other zoning or planning decision, action, or inaction. In this case, the local governmental agency is the person proposing the change in use for the purposes of preparing the impact report required by this section and is required to take steps to mitigate the adverse impact of the change as may be required in subdivision (e).

(j) This section is applicable when the closure, cessation, or change of use is the result of a decision by an enforcement agency, as defined in Section 18207 of the Health and Safety Code, to suspend the permit to operate the mobilehome park. In this case, the mobilehome park owner is the person proposing the change in use for purposes of preparing the impact report required by this section and is required to take steps to mitigate the adverse impact of the change as may be required in subdivision (e).

(k) This section, except paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), is applicable when the closure, cessation, or change of use is the result of damage or destruction of the mobilehome park by a disaster as defined in Section 798.64 of the Civil Code.

(l) This section establishes a minimum standard for local regulation of the conversion of a mobilehome park to another use, the closure of a mobilehome park, and the cessation of use of the land as a mobilehome park and shall not prevent a local agency from enacting more stringent measures.