City Council

(5) 14­0268­S18 HOUSING AND HOMELESSNESS COMMITTEE REPORT relative to amending the Tenant Anti­Harassment Ordinance with changes consistent with State and Federal statutes. Recommendations for Council action, as initiated by Motion (Raman – Harris­Dawson – Soto­Martinez): 1. REQUEST the City Attorney to prepare and present a draft Ordinance, in consultation with the Los Angeles Housing Department (LAHD) and any other relevant departments, to amend the Tenant Anti­Harassment Ordinance (Ordinance No. 187109) with the following changes consistent with State and Federal statutes: a. Amend Los Angeles Municipal Code (LAMC) Section 45.33 as follows: Tenant Harassment shall be defined as a landlord's knowing and willful course of bad faith conduct directed at a specific tenant or tenants that causes the latter detriment and or harm, and that serves no lawful purpose, including, . “Bad faith” refers to willful, reckless, or grossly negligent conduct. Examples of Tenant Harassment include but are not limited to, the following actions: b. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.1 as follows: Reducing or eliminating, or threatening to reduce or to eliminate, housing services required by a lease, contract or law, including the elimination of parking if provided in the tenant's lease or contract except when necessary to comply with a court order or local or state law, or to create an accessory dwelling unit or additional housing. c. Maintain LAMC Section 45.33.2 as follows: Failing to perform and timely complete necessary repairs and maintenance required by Federal, State, County, or local housing, health, or safety laws; or failure to follow applicable industry standards to minimize exposure to noise, dust, lead paint, asbestos, or other building materials with potentially harmful health impacts. d. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.3 as follows: Abuse of the right of access into a rental unit as established and limited by California Civil Code Section 1954, including the following: entering or photographing portions of a rental unit that are beyond the scope of a lawful entry or inspection,; September 17, 2024 to explicitly - the specific justification in notice to the tenant, failure to reasonably coordinate paint, asbestos, or other building materials with potentially harmful health impacts. d. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.3 as follows: Abuse of the right of access into a rental unit as established and limited by California Civil Code Section 1954, including the following: entering or photographing portions of a rental unit that are beyond the scope of a lawful entry or inspection,; failure to explicitly state the specific justification for entry in notice to the tenant, failure to reasonably coordinate entry with the tenant's schedule; misrepresenting the reasons for accessing residential real property as stated on the notice of entry; failure to provide the approximate time window for the entry or providing a time window that is unreasonably excessive in time for the stated purpose; failure to timely notify the tenant that entry for which the tenant was previously given notice has been canceled, and/or excessively requesting entry in a manner not reasonably justified by the reason stated on the notice. e. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.4 as follows: Threatening a tenant, or their guests, by word or gesture, with physical harm. f. Maintain LAMC Section 45.33.5 as follows: Attempting to coerce the tenant to vacate with offer(s) of payments. g. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.6 as follows: Misrepresenting Representing to a tenant that the tenant is required to vacate a rental unit or enticing a tenant to vacate a rental unit through an intentional misrepresentation or the concealment or omission of a material fact. h. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.9 as follows: Refusing to acknowledge, facilitate, or accept receipt of lawful rent payments or rental assistance payments as set forth in the lease agreement or as established by the usual practice of the parties or applicable law. This includes refusal to accept rent paid on behalf of the tenant from a third party, or refusing to timely provide a W­9 form or other necessary documentation for the tenant to receive rental assistance from a government agency, non­profit September 17,or2024 h. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.9 as follows: Refusing to acknowledge, facilitate, or accept receipt of lawful rent payments or rental assistance payments as set forth in the lease agreement or as established by the usual practice of the parties or applicable law. This includes refusal to accept rent paid on behalf of the tenant from a third party, or refusing to timely provide a W­9 form or other necessary documentation for the tenant to receive rental assistance from a government agency, non­profit organization, or other third party. i. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.15 as follows: Interfering with a tenant's right to privacy; or requesting information that violates a tenant's right to privacy, including, but not limited to, residency or citizenship status or Social Security Number, relationship status, or criminal history, except as authorized by law. j. Amend LAMC Section 45.33.16 as follows: 16. Unilaterally imposing or requiring an existing tenant to agree to new material terms of tenancy or a new rental agreement, unless: (1) the change in the terms of the tenancy is authorized by California Civil Code Sections 1946.2(f), 1947.5. or 1947.12, or required by Federal, State, or local law or regulatory agreement with a government agency; or (2) the change in the terms of the tenancy was accepted in writing by the tenant after receipt of written notice from the owner that the tenant need not accept such new term as part of the rental agreement. k. Insert LAMC Section 45.33.17 as follows: 16 17. Other repeated acts or omissions of such significance as to substantially interfere with or disturb the comfort, repose, peace or quiet of a tenant(s) and that cause, are likely to cause, or are committed with the objective to cause a tenant(s) to surrender or waive any rights in relation to such tenancy. l. Maintain LAMC Section 45.34 as follows: A tenant may use the protections afforded in this article as an affirmative defense in unlawful detainer, ejectment, and other actions when their landlord engages in actions constituting tenant harassment as defined in this article and other applicable laws. tenant(s) to surrender or waive any rights in relation to such tenancy. l. Maintain LAMC Section 45.34 as follows: A tenant may use the protections afforded in this article as an affirmative defense in unlawful detainer, ejectment, and other actions when their landlord engages in actions constituting tenant harassment as defined in this article and other applicable laws. m. Amend LAMC Section 45.35.A as follows: An aggrieved tenant under this article, the City of Los Angeles, or any person, organization, or entity who will fairly and adequately represent the interests of an aggrieved tenant(s) under this article, may institute civil proceedings as provided by law, against any landlord violating any of the provisions of this article and any person who aids, facilitates, and/or incites another to violate the provisions of this article, regardless of whether the rental unit remains occupied or has been vacated due to harassment. n. Amend LAMC Section 45.35.B as follows: A tenant prevailing in court under this article may shall b e awarded compensatory damages, rent refunds for reduction in housing services, reasonable attorney's fees and costs, imposition of civil penalties up to $10,000 per violation depending upon the severity of the violation, tenant relocation, and other appropriate relief, as adjudged by the court. o. Amend LAMC Section 45.35.D as follows: Any landlord violating any of the provisions of this article, and any person who aids, facilitates, and/or incites another to violate the provisions of this article may be enjoined therefrom by a court of competent jurisdiction. A court may issue other equitable relief as appropriate, if legal requirements of equitable relief are met. p. Amend LAMC Section 45.35.E as follows: The remedies in this paragraph are not exclusive nor do they preclude any tenant from seeking any other remedies, o r penalties and punitive damages, as provided by law. The court may also award punitive damages to any plaintiff, including the City of Los Angeles, in a proper case as defined by Civil Code Section 3294 or successor statute. In addition to the remedies provided herein, a violator is liable for such costs, expenses, and disbursements paid or incurred bv the City in abatement and prosecution of the violation. q. Amend LAMC Section 45.35.F as follows: Landlord Notice. A civil proceeding or small claims case initiated under this article alleging any violation of LAMC Section 45.33.2 may be commenced only after the tenant or any other person provides written notice to the landlord of the alleged violation, and the landlord fails to remedy the repair or maintenance issue within a reasonable period of time. However, no waiting period shall apply if the landlord's conduct is intentional and demonstrates a willful disregard for the comfort, safety or well­being of the tenant(s). r. Insert LAMC Section 45.45.G as follows: G. Statute of Limitations. The statute of limitations for an action shall be three (3) years, and all remedies under the Ordinance are available for the entire statutory period. 2. INSTRUCT the LAHD and REQUEST the City Attorney to report to the Housing and Homelessness Committee monthly on the number of Tenant Anti­Harassment Ordinance claims in each District, the tenant's reasoning for filing, and how the City has responded to each claim. The report should include the corresponding unit information such as address, rent amount, and if it is protected by the Rent Stabilization Ordinance. Fiscal Impact Statement: Neither the City Administrative Officer or the Chief Legislative Analyst has completed a financial analysis of this report.