TITLE
Recommendation to direct City Attorney to prepare an ordinance to address tenant harassment within the City of Long Beach; and, direct City Attorney to bring this back to the City Council for consideration at its next scheduled meeting, or as soon thereafter as reasonably possible.
DISCUSSION
Over the years, tenants have reported increasing and significant incidents of harassment throughout the City of Long Beach. These include, but are not limited to, interruption or termination of housing services, failure to timely perform unit maintenance, abuse of the landlord’s right of access into dwelling units, demands that tenants sign over their federal stimulus checks to pay rent, statements of false information regarding housing policies and protections, and service of improper notices to vacate.
The City Council therefore requests the City Attorney to draft an urgency ordinance with the following provisions, to deter and prevent tenant harassment.
No landlord shall:
1. Interrupt, terminate, or fail to provide Housing Services required by written or oral contract or by federal, State, County, or local housing, health, or safety laws, or threaten to do so, or violate or threaten to violate Cal. Civil Code Section 789.3 (i.e., utility shut-offs and illegal lockouts);
2. Fail to timely perform repairs and maintenance required by a Rental Agreement or by federal, State or local housing, health, or safety laws; fail to exercise due diligence in completing repairs once undertaken; failure to follow appropriate industry repair, containment, or remediation protocols designed to minimize exposure to noise, dust, lead, paint, mold, asbestos, or other building materials with potentially harmful health impacts; or conduct elective renovation or construction of a residential rental unit for the purpose of harassing a Tenant;
3. Abuse the right of access into a dwelling unit as established by Cal. Civil Code Section 1954. Such abuse includes, but is not limited to, en...
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