AB 2835: Motels and hotels: publicly funded shelter programs.

Existing law provides that the continued occupancy of a shelter program participant in a motel or hotel, as defined, does not constitute a new tenancy and is not considered a person who hires for purposes of an unlawful detainer action if the shelter program meets certain requirements, including that the program establishes, adopts, and clearly documents rules governing how and for what reasons a program participants enrollment may be terminated. Under existing law, permissible reasons for termination include, among others, physical violence to staff or other program participants. Existing law requires the shelter program operator to provide a written termination notice to a shelter program participant at least 30 days prior to the proposed termination, as specified.

This bill would revise the definition of motel or hotel to mean any hotel, motel, bed and breakfast inn, or other similar transient lodging establishment. The bill would make physical violence to hotel guests a permissible reason for termination of a shelter program participants enrollment. If a shelter program participant has self-exited, as defined, from the program, the bill would exempt the shelter program operator from providing a 30-day notice. If a shelter program participant will exit from the program due to time limits and their stay is extended less than 30 days, the bill would authorize the shelter program administrator or operator to issue an amended termination notice with that additional period of time.

Existing law prohibits a hotel or motel from adopting termination policies, imposing restrictions on property access, or levying charges and fees that are specifically for shelter program participants. Existing law also prohibits a hotel or motel from requiring those participants to check out and reregister, move out of or between rooms, or move out from the hotel or motel while actively enrolled in a shelter program for purposes of preventing occupants from establishing rights of tenancy.

This bill would except these prohibitions from an existing law provision that, among other things, requires any operational policies negotiated prior to the commencement of the shelter program to be approved by the shelter program administrator and shared with their program participants, as specified.

Existing law repeals these and other provisions related to shelter programs on January 1, 2025.

This bill would delete the January 1, 2025, repeal date, thereby extending operation of the above-described provisions indefinitely.