AB 1269: Mobilehome Residents and Senior Protection Act.

The California Fair Employment and Housing Act establishes the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, under the direction of an executive officer to, among other things, receive, investigate, conciliate, mediate, and prosecute complaints alleging practices made unlawful under the act. The act establishes procedures for the prevention and elimination of discrimination in housing made unlawful under its provisions, including authorizing any person claiming to be aggrieved by an alleged violation of specified provisions to file a verified complaint in writing with the department. The act requires the department to investigate an alleged violation and, in the case of failure to eliminate a violation that has occurred, or is about to occur, through conference, conciliation, mediation, or persuasion, requires the director to file a civil action in the name of the department on behalf of that person.

The Mobilehome Residency Law governs the terms and conditions of residency in mobilehome parks. That law, among other things, requires the rental agreement between the management of a mobilehome park and the homeowner to be in writing and to contain specified terms and provisions, requires the management to meet and consult with homeowners, either individually, collectively, or with representatives of a group of homeowners, on specified matters within 30 days of a written request to do so, and prohibits management from terminating or refusing to renew tenancy within a park, except for specified reasons and upon giving written notice to the homeowner.

This bill would, on and after July 1, 2020, until January 1, 2023, extend the application of the above-described enforcement procedures for the prevention and elimination of discrimination in housing under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act to apply to the prevention and elimination of actions made unlawful under the Mobilehome Residency Law against homeowners or residents of mobilehomes, as provided. The bill would prescribe requirements for an aggrieved home owner or resident to follow when filing a complaint in this regard and for the department in investigating these complaints. The bill would also authorize, on and after July 1, 2020, until January 1, 2023, the department to investigate potential violations of the Mobilehome Residency Law that are discovered during the course of an existing formal investigation, but for which the department has not received a formal complaint.

The bill would require the department, by no later than July 1, 2018, and by no later than July 1 of each subsequent year until January 1, 2023, to assess upon the management of a mobilehome park subject to the Mobilehome Residency Law and collect a registration fee of $10 for each mobilehome lot located within the mobilehome park for the purpose of providing the complaint resolution process described in this bill. The bill would authorize management to pass this fee on to the homeowners and residents within the mobilehome park.

The bill, until January 1, 2023, would require all fees and fines collected pursuant to this bill to be deposited in the Mobilehome Residency Law Protection Fund, which this bill would establish in the State Treasury. The bill would make all moneys in the fund available to the department, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for costs of administering this bill.