Chapter 5.63
TENANT EVICTION PROTECTIONS
Sections:
5.63.010 Purpose and applicability.
5.63.030 Termination of tenancy.
5.63.040 Relocation assistance.
5.63.050 Tenant buyout agreements.
5.63.060 Retaliatory eviction and anti-harassment.
5.63.090 Administrative citations.
5.63.010 Purpose and applicability.
A. The purpose of this chapter is to reasonably regulate just cause evictions so as to be more protective than California Civil Code Section 1946.2.
B. This chapter shall apply to any tenancy after at least one tenant has continuously and lawfully occupied a rental unit for 12 months or more.
C. This chapter regulates evictions for certain tenancies. It requires landlords to provide relocation assistance for certain no-fault evictions, prohibits retaliation and harassment, and provides for the implementation and enforcement of this chapter. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.020 Definitions.
For the purposes of this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise, the following definitions shall apply:
A. “Buyout agreement” means a written agreement between a landlord and a tenant as provided in BGMC 5.63.050 by which a tenant, typically in consideration for monetary payment, agrees to vacate a rental unit.
B. “City” means the city of Bell Gardens.
C. “Code” means the city of Bell Gardens Municipal Code.
D. “Department” means the community and economic development department of the city of Bell Gardens, or other department designated by the city council to administer the provisions of this chapter.
E. “Director” means the director of the department, or their designee.
F. “Ellis Act” means California Government Code Sections 7060 through 7060.7.
G. “Housing services” means all services provided by the landlord related to the use or occupancy of a rental unit, including water, heat, utilities, insurance, maintenance, repairs, painting, elevator service, laundry facilities, janitorial service, refuse removal, furnishings, window shades and screens, parking, storage, security services, recreational areas, right to have specified number of tenants or occupants, allowing pets, communications technologies (internet, cable and satellite services), and any other benefit, privilege or facility that has been provided by the landlord to the tenant with use or occupancy of a rental unit. Services to a rental unit shall include a proportionate part of services provided to common facilities of the building in which a rental unit is contained.
H. “Landlord” means an owner, lessor, sublessor, or any other person entitled to offer any rental unit for rent or entitled to receive rent for the use and occupancy of a rental unit, and the agent, representative, or successor of any of the foregoing.
I. “Landlord’s family member” means a spouse, domestic partner, child, grandchild, parent, or grandparent of a landlord who is a natural person whose name is on the title of the property.
J. “Mobilehome” means any mobilehome as defined under California Civil Code Section 798.3.
K. “Mobilehome park” means an area of land located where two or more mobilehome spaces are rented or leased out for mobilehomes used as residences.
L. “Rent” means the sum of all periodic payments and all nonmonetary consideration demanded or received by a landlord from a tenant for the use or occupancy of a rental unit or mobilehome park space located in the jurisdictional boundaries of the city of Bell Gardens, including tenant’s access to and use of housing services. “Rent” includes, without limitation, the fair market value of goods accepted, labor performed, or services rendered. “Rent” does not include any of the following: security deposits, utility charges billed separately to the tenant by the utility company, and pass-through fees and charges authorized pursuant to this chapter.
M. “Rental agreement” means an agreement, oral, written, or implied, between a landlord and tenant for the use or occupancy of a rental unit and related housing services.
N. “Rental unit” means any dwelling unit, as defined under California Civil Code Section 1940(c) located in the jurisdictional boundaries of the city of Bell Gardens and that is used or occupied for human habitation in consideration of payment of rent, whether or not the residential use is legally permitted, including mobilehomes rented by the owner of the mobilehome, and accessory dwelling units.
O. “Residential real property” includes any parcel of land containing one or more dwelling units intended for human habitation.
P. “Tenancy” means the lawful right or entitlement of a tenant to use or occupy a rental unit. This includes a lease or a sublease.
Q. “Tenant” means a tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee, or any other person entitled, under the terms of a rental agreement, to the use or occupancy of any rental unit. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.030 Termination of tenancy.
A. No landlord shall terminate a tenancy of an occupied rental unit after a tenant has continuously and lawfully occupied the rental unit for 12 months or more unless the landlord can demonstrate either a for-cause or no-fault termination.
B. When terminating a tenancy either for cause or no-fault, a landlord must comply with all of the following:
1. The landlord must serve a written notice to the tenant in accordance with California Civil Code Sections 1946 through 1946.5 that states the landlord will terminate the tenancy, indicates at least one for-cause or no-fault reason for termination in reasonable detail, and includes any other information required by federal or state law; and
2. The landlord has not accepted and will not accept rent or any other consideration in return for the continued use of the rental unit beyond the term of the terminated tenancy in compliance with California Civil Code Sections 1945 through 1946.5; and
3. The landlord qualifies the termination as for cause or no-fault, as specified in this section; and
4. If the termination is a no-fault termination, the landlord has provided the tenant with the notice of relocation assistance required by BGMC 5.63.040; and
5. The landlord has submitted to the department, within five days after service of the notice of termination on the tenant, a true and accurate copy of the landlord’s written notice of termination, and proof of such service, signed under penalty of perjury, on the tenant. The landlord shall maintain proof of service to the department as evidence that the landlord has complied with this section.
C. For-Cause Termination of Tenancy. If a landlord can show any of the following circumstances with respect to a termination of tenancy in a rental unit, the termination qualifies as a for-cause termination.
1. Failure to Pay Rent. Tenant failed to pay rent within three days of written notice being served on tenant by landlord demanding payment as provided in paragraph (2) of California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161.
2. Violation of Material Term of Rental Agreement. Tenant has continued to violate a material term of the rental agreement as provided in California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161(3), after written notice to cease, and did not cure such violation within 10 days after receiving written notice from the landlord of such violation.
3. Waste. A tenant committed waste as described in California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161(4).
4. Nuisance or Illegal Purpose. Tenant has maintained, committed, or permitted the maintenance or commission of a nuisance or used the rental unit for an illegal purpose as provided in California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161(4) including:
a. Any crime or act of violence committed by a tenant of a rental unit which involves use of a gun or a deadly weapon, or inflicts serious bodily injury and for which a police report has been filed;
b. Any threat of violent crime or violence, which includes any statement made by a tenant, or at the tenant’s request, by the tenant’s agent, to any person who is on the property where the rental unit is located, threatening to commit a crime or violence which will result in death or serious bodily injury to another person, with the specific intent that the statement is to be taken as a threat, even if there is no intent of actually carrying it out, when on its face and under the circumstances in which it is made, it is unequivocal, immediate, and specific as to convey to the person threatened, a gravity of purpose and an immediate prospect of execution of the threat, and thereby causes that person reasonably to be in sustained fear for his or her own safety or for his or her immediate family’s safety; or
c. Tenant has created or is maintaining a dangerous condition or an unsanitary condition that endangers health, safety and welfare or physically damages the unit beyond normal wear and tear and that condition has not been promptly abated or repaired after written notice to the tenant from the landlord and the passage of a reasonable cure period.
It shall be an affirmative defense to an action for possession of a rental unit under this subsection (E)(4) if a court determines that: (i) the tenant or the tenant’s household member is a victim of an act or acts that constitute domestic violence or sexual assault or stalking; and (ii) the notice of for-cause termination is substantially based upon the act or acts constituting domestic violence or sexual assault or stalking against the tenant or a tenant’s household member, including but not limited to an action for possession based on complaints of noise, disturbances, or repeated presence of police.
5. Failure to Sign Substantially Similar Lease. The tenant has refused to execute a written extension or renewal of a rental agreement upon expiration of a prior rental agreement, after written request or demand from the landlord, but only if the provisions are substantially similar and the additional term is of similar duration to the prior written rental agreement, and is consistent with federal, state, and local laws. For purposes of this subsection, the landlord’s written request or demand must be received no later than 60 days before final day of tenancy of the prior rental agreement.
6. Assignment or Subletting in Violation of Lease. The tenant has assigned or sublet the rental unit in violation of the rental agreement, as provided in California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161(4).
7. Refuse Access. Tenant has continued to refuse, after landlord has provided a written request, reasonable access to the rental unit by the landlord for the purpose of making necessary repairs or improvements in accordance with California Civil Code Sections 1101.5 and 1954 and California Health and Safety Code Sections 13113.7 and 17926.1.
8. Failure to Vacate After Termination of Employment. Tenant was employed by the landlord to serve as a resident manager or other employee, was provided with the rental unit as part of or as a condition of the employment and the employment has been terminated. This provision shall not apply to any tenant whose tenancy in the building or complex housing the rental unit commenced prior to assuming managerial responsibilities or whose status as a tenant commenced prior to their status as a resident manager.
9. Failure to Vacate After Termination of Lease. A tenant’s failure to timely deliver possession of the rental unit after: (a) providing the landlord written notice as provided in Civil Code Section 1946 of the tenant’s intention to terminate a lease; or (b) making a written offer to surrender, that is accepted in writing by the landlord, but the time specified in that written notice as described in Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161(5) has expired.
D. No-Fault Termination of Tenancy. If a landlord can show any of the following circumstances with respect to a termination of tenancy in a rental unit, the termination qualifies as a no-fault termination.
1. A landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession in order to imminently:
a. Demolish the rental unit.
b. Withdraw the rental unit permanently from rental housing use pursuant to the Ellis Act and other applicable state laws.
2. A landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession of a rental unit for the use and occupancy by landlord or landlord’s family member as the principal residence. Said rental unit must be occupied as the principal residence within 90 days of the tenant household vacating the rental unit, and the rental unit must continue to be occupied as the principal residence of landlord or landlord’s family member for at least three years, unless extenuating circumstances exist.
a. If the rental agreement was entered into on or after the effective date of this chapter, this subsection (D)(2) shall apply only if the tenant agrees, in writing, to the termination, or if a provision of the rental agreement allows the landlord to terminate the rental agreement if the landlord, or landlord’s family member, unilaterally decides to occupy the rental unit.
b. A landlord must provide the tenant 60 days’ written notice that the landlord intends to terminate the tenancy.
c. Owner-Occupancy Disclosure.
i. Not less than 60 days prior to the final date of the tenancy, in addition to any notice required by California Civil Code Section 827, the landlord must disclose to the department the name(s) of the eligible individual(s) who will occupy the rental unit, and the relationship of said individual(s) to the landlord.
ii. The department may contact landlord during the three-year occupancy time frame to confirm that the landlord or landlord’s family member resides in the recovered rental unit(s), and may obtain written verification of residency.
d. A landlord may not terminate a tenancy under this section if any of the following apply, unless the landlord or landlord’s family member who will reside in the dwelling unit is similarly situated as the tenant or tenant’s household members who are being displaced:
i. Any tenant in the rental unit has continuously resided in the rental unit for at least five years, and a member of tenant’s household is either: (A) 62 years of age or older; or (B) disabled as defined in Section 12955.3 of the California Government Code or handicapped as defined in Section 50072 of the California Health and Safety Code;
ii. Any tenant in the rental unit or member of tenant’s household is terminally ill as certified by a treating physician licensed to practice in the state of California; or
iii. Any tenant in the rental unit is a low-income tenant (low-income tenant means a household whose income does not exceed the qualifying limits for lower income families as established and amended from time to time pursuant to Section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937, or as otherwise defined in California Health and Safety Code Section 50079.5).
e. Tenant’s Right of First Return.
i. If a landlord or landlord’s family member ceases occupation of the rental unit within three years after the final date of tenancy, the tenant of a rental unit is entitled to receive notice of the first right to return to rent the same unit at the rent previously charged plus any annual rent increases allowed under Chapter 5.62 BGMC.
ii. Nothing in this section shall be construed to relieve the landlord of the obligation to directly contact the former tenant and to advise the tenant that the recovered rental unit will again be offered for rent.
3. A landlord seeks in good faith to recover possession to comply with any of the following: (i) an order issued by a government agency or court relating to habitability that necessitates vacating the rental unit; (ii) an order issued by a government agency or court to vacate the rental unit; or (iii) a local ordinance that necessitates vacating the rental unit. If it is determined by any government agency or court that the tenant is at fault for the condition or conditions triggering the order or for the need to vacate under this subsection, the tenant shall not be entitled to relocation assistance.
E. All no-fault terminations of tenancy are eligible for relocation assistance. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.040 Relocation assistance.
A. Permanent Relocation Assistance. When relocation assistance must be paid to tenants who are evicted from their rental unit pursuant to BGMC 5.63.030, the landlord must make the relocation assistance payment in accordance with this section. The landlord must provide written notice to the tenant of the tenant’s entitlement to permanent relocation assistance at the same time the landlord serves a notice of termination of tenancy.
1. The landlord shall pay a relocation assistance amount equal to three times the tenant’s monthly rent in effect when the landlord served the notice to terminate the tenancy.
2. If any tenant residing in the rental unit from which the tenants are to be displaced includes a qualified tenant, then all tenants living in the rental unit are collectively entitled to additional relocation assistance as follows:
a. The landlord shall pay an additional relocation assistance amount equal to one times the tenant’s monthly rent in effect when the landlord served the notice to terminate the tenancy.
b. For purposes of this subsection, “qualified tenant” means any tenant who:
i. Is 62 years of age or older, disabled, as defined in Section 12955.3 of the California Government Code or handicapped as defined in Section 50072 of the California Health and Safety Code;
ii. Has one or more dependent children under the age of 18 residing in the rental unit;
iii. Meets the income limits for a “lower-income household” as defined in California Health and Safety Code Section 50079.5; or
iv. Has continuously resided in the rental unit for five years or more.
The tenant shall notify landlord within 10 days of receiving the termination of tenancy notice, if any of the tenants living in the rental unit from which the tenants are to be displaced includes a qualified tenant, along with any reasonable proof of eligibility.
3. Permanent relocation assistance payments must be paid directly to the tenant.
a. If a rental unit is occupied by two or more tenants, then each tenant of the rental unit shall be paid a pro-rata share of the relocation assistance payment.
b. Landlord shall pay one-half of the relocation assistance due no later than 15 days following service of the termination of tenancy and the balance due no later than five business days after the tenant has vacated the rental unit. If a tenant fails to vacate after the expiration of the notice to terminate the tenancy, the actual amount of any relocation assistance provided pursuant to this chapter shall be recoverable as damages in an action to recover possession.
B. Temporary Relocation Assistance. A landlord must provide temporary relocation assistance to tenants of a rental unit who are temporarily displaced due to repairs, rehabilitation of a rental unit, health and safety violations, or other work or activities that will make the rental unit an untenantable dwelling, as defined in California Civil Code Section 1941.1, or will expose the tenant to toxic or hazardous materials, or that cannot otherwise be completed while the tenant remains in the rental unit.
1. Thirty Days or Less. A landlord must provide the tenant a per-diem payment if the tenant will be temporarily displaced for 30 days or less.
2. Thirty-One Days or More. A landlord must provide the tenant either a per-diem payment or comparable temporary accommodations, if available.
3. Per-Diem Payment.
a. Per-diem payment will be based on the Federal General Services Administration per-diem rate for lodging in the county of Los Angeles, which is updated on a yearly basis, unless otherwise agreed upon by the landlord and tenant, and may include any applicable transient occupancy taxes.
b. Upon mutual agreement by the landlord and tenant, per-diem payments may be paid directly to the tenant, or in the event of a hotel, motel or short-term rental accommodations, directly to the hotel, motel or short-term rental.
4. Temporary relocation assistance payments will be made on a pro-rata basis to the eligible tenant household.
5. Temporary Hotel or Motel Accommodation. If relocation is to a hotel or motel, the landlord must provide a hotel or motel accommodation which is safe, sanitary, and, unless otherwise agreed upon by the landlord and tenant, within a reasonable distance of the tenant’s rental unit.
6. The temporary displacement and relocation of a tenant pursuant to this subsection (B) shall not terminate the tenancy of the displaced tenant. The displaced tenant shall have the right to reoccupy his or her rental unit upon the completion of the work necessary for the rental unit to comply with housing, health, building or safety laws or any government order and the tenant shall retain all rights of tenancy that existed prior to the displacement.
7. Nothing in this subsection (B) shall be construed as authorizing a landlord to require a tenant to vacate a unit, except as permitted under federal, state, or local law.
C. No Waiver. A tenant cannot waive his or her right to receive relocation assistance required by this chapter.
D. Any action brought by a tenant for a violation of this section must be brought in a court of competent jurisdiction. No administrative remedy need be exhausted prior to filing suit pursuant to this section. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.050 Tenant buyout agreements.
A. Landlord’s Disclosure Prior to Buyout Offer. At the time a proposed buyout agreement is provided, the landlord shall provide each tenant in the rental unit a written disclosure, on a form approved by the department, in English and in the tenant’s primary language if other than English translated at the landlord’s expense, that shall include all of the following:
1. A statement that the tenant has a right not to enter into buyout negotiations or a buyout agreement;
2. A statement that the tenant may choose to consult with an attorney before entering into a buyout agreement;
3. A statement that the tenant may rescind the buyout agreement for up to 30 days after it is fully executed;
4. A statement that the tenant may contact the department for information about other buyout agreements in the tenant’s neighborhood and other relevant information;
5. Any other information required by the department consistent with the purpose and provisions of this section; and
6. A space for each tenant to sign and write the date the landlord provided the tenant with the disclosure.
B. Requirement for Buyout Agreements. The buyout agreement shall:
1. Be in writing in English and the language in which the buyout agreement was negotiated if other than English translated at the landlord’s expense. The landlord shall give each tenant a copy of the proposed buyout agreement at least 45 days before it is executed by the parties.
2. Include the following statement in bold letters in at least 12-point boldface type in close proximity to the space reserved for the signature of the tenant:
a. “You may cancel this buyout agreement in writing at any time before the thirtieth (30th) day after all parties have signed this buyout agreement.”
b. “You have a right not to enter into a buyout agreement.”
c. “You may choose to consult with an attorney before signing this buyout agreement. The city of Bell Gardens community development department may also have information about other buyout agreements in your neighborhood.”
C. Rescission of Buyout Agreement. A tenant shall have the right to rescind a buyout agreement for up to 30 days after its execution by all parties. In order to rescind a buyout agreement, the tenant must hand-deliver, email, or send by certified mail return receipt requested, a statement to the landlord indicating that the tenant has rescinded the buyout agreement.
D. Filing of Buyout Agreement and Disclosure Notice. The landlord shall provide the tenant a copy of the fully executed buyout agreement within 10 days of execution. Landlord shall also file with the department a copy of the executed buyout agreement, along with proof of service to the tenant of the disclosure notice as required in this section, within 10 days after the buyout agreement is executed by all parties. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.060 Retaliatory eviction and anti-harassment.
A. Retaliatory Eviction.
1. No landlord may terminate a tenancy or refuse to renew a tenancy or otherwise cause a tenant to vacate a rental unit, if the landlord’s intent in termination of the tenancy or refusal to renew the tenancy is retaliatory in nature, and if the tenant is not in default as to the payment of rent.
2. A tenant may assert retaliation affirmatively or as a defense to the landlord’s action regardless of the period of time which has elapsed between the tenant’s assertion or exercise of rights under this chapter and the alleged act of retaliation.
3. Retaliation against a tenant because of the tenant’s exercise of rights under this chapter is prohibited. Retaliation claims may only be brought in court and may not be addressed administratively. A court may consider the protections afforded by this chapter in evaluating a claim of retaliation.
B. Anti-Harassment. No landlord, or any person, acting as a principal or agent, offering a rental unit for rent, or any contractor, subcontractor or employee of the landlord shall, with respect to property used as a rental unit under any rental agreement or other lawful tenancy, do any of the following:
1. Interrupt, terminate, or fail to provide housing services required by rental agreement or by federal, state, or local housing, health, or safety laws, or threaten to do so, or violate California Civil Code Sections 789.3 and 1940.2.
2. Do any of the following actions in bad faith:
a. Fail to perform repairs and maintenance required by rental agreement or by federal, state, or local laws;
b. Fail to exercise due diligence in completing repairs and maintenance once undertaken;
c. Fail 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;
d. Conduct elective renovation or construction of rental unit for the purpose of harassing a tenant;
e. Refuse to acknowledge or accept receipt of a tenant’s lawful rent payment as set forth in a rental agreement, by usual practice of the parties, or in a notice to pay rent or quit;
f. Refuse to cash or process a rent check or other form of acceptable rent payment for over 30 days after it is tendered;
g. Fail to maintain a current address, in addition to any electronic payment methods, for delivery of rent payments;
h. Request information that violates a tenant’s right to privacy, including, but not limited to, residency or citizenship status, protected class status, or social security number, except as required by law or in the case of a social security number, for the purpose of determining the tenant’s qualifications for a tenancy;
i. Release information protected by the tenant’s right to privacy except as required or authorized by law; or
j. Request or demand an unreasonable amount of information from tenant in response to a request for reasonable accommodation.
3. Abuse the right of access into a rental unit as established by California Civil Code Section 1954 or other applicable law. This includes, but is not limited to, entries for inspections that are not related to necessary repairs or services; entries that are unreasonable in frequency or duration; entries that improperly target certain tenants or are used to collect evidence against the occupant or otherwise beyond the scope of an otherwise lawful entry.
4. Influence or attempt to influence a tenant to vacate a rental unit through fraud, misrepresentation, intimidation or coercion, which shall include threatening to report a tenant to the United States Department of Homeland Security.
5. Threaten the tenant, by word or gesture, with physical harm, or repeatedly mistreat an occupant of a rental unit during in-person conversations, through social media postings or messages, or other communications, with language, verbal or written, that a reasonable person would consider likely to cause fear or provoke an immediate violent reaction.
6. Violate any law which prohibits discrimination based on race, gender, sexual preference, sexual orientation, ethnic background, nationality, religion, age, parenthood, marriage, pregnancy, disability, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), occupancy by a minor child, or source of income.
7. Take action to terminate any tenancy including service of any notice to quit or other eviction notice or bring any action to recover possession of a rental unit based upon facts which the landlord has no reasonable cause to believe to be true or upon a legal theory which is untenable under the facts known to the landlord. No landlord shall be liable under this subsection for bringing an action to recover possession unless and until the tenant has obtained a favorable termination of that action.
8. Remove from the rental unit personal property, furnishings, or any other items without the prior written consent of the tenant, except when done pursuant to enforcement of a legal termination of tenancy.
9. Provide false written or verbal information regarding any federal, state, or local tenant protections, including mischaracterizing the nature or effect of a notice to quit or other eviction notice.
10. Offer payments to:
a. A tenant to vacate, including a buyout agreement offer, more frequently than once every six months, after the tenant has notified the landlord in writing that the tenant does not desire to receive further offers of payments to vacate.
b. Attempt to coerce the tenant to vacate accompanied with threats or intimidation. This shall not include settlement offers in pending eviction actions made in good faith and not accompanied with threats or intimidation.
11. Interfere with a tenant’s right to quiet use and enjoyment of a rental unit as that right is defined by law.
12. Commit repeated acts or omissions of such significance as to substantially interfere with or disturb the comfort, repose, peace, or quiet of any person lawfully entitled to occupancy of such rental unit and that cause, are likely to cause, or are intended to cause any person lawfully entitled to occupancy of a rental unit to vacate such rental unit or to surrender or waive any rights in relation to such occupancy.
13. Interfere with the right of tenants to organize as tenants and engage in concerted activities with other tenants for the purpose of mutual aid and protection; provide property access to tenant organizers, advocates, or representatives working with or on behalf of tenants living at a property; convene tenant or tenant organization meetings in an appropriate space accessible to tenants under the terms of their rental agreement; or distribute and post literature in common areas, including lobby areas and bulletin boards, informing other tenants of their rights and of opportunities to involve themselves in organized tenant activities.
C. Remedies and Penalties. For the purposes of this section:
1. If any landlord or any person, acting as a principal or agent, offering a rental unit for rent, or any contractor, subcontractor, or employee of the landlord, violates the terms of this section, an aggrieved tenant may institute a civil action, as allowed under BGMC 5.63.100, for injunctive relief, direct money damages, and any other relief that the court deems appropriate.
2. The above remedies are not exclusive and do not preclude any tenant from seeking other remedies or penalties provided by this chapter or applicable law. No administrative remedy need be exhausted prior to filing suit pursuant to this section. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.070 Notices to tenants.
A. Mandatory Notices to Tenants. Landlords must provide to each tenant, prior to or at the time of agreeing to rent or lease a rental unit, a notice of tenant rights under this chapter. The department shall publish a form notice of tenant rights in English and other frequently spoken languages. Landlords must provide the form notice in the following circumstances:
1. When entering into a rental agreement, by including a copy of the form notice as an exhibit or attachment to the written rental agreement;
2. When renewing a rental agreement; and
B. If the rental agreement is negotiated or written in a language other than English, the landlord must also provide the form notice of tenant rights in English and the language in which the rental agreement was negotiated or written. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.080 Enforcement.
A. Enforcement Authority. The department is authorized to take appropriate steps it deems necessary to administer and enforce this chapter.
B. The director of the department, or designee, may develop and publish procedures and guidelines to aid in the implementation of this chapter. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.090 Administrative citations.
A. Administrative Citation. Any landlord or tenant who violates any provision of this chapter, or department’s procedures and guidelines, is subject to an administrative fine as set in a schedule of fines adopted by resolution by the city council as provided in Chapter 1.16 BGMC.
B. Remedies are Cumulative. Each day that a violation continues shall constitute a separate and distinct offense for which an administrative fine may be imposed. The remedies set forth in this section are cumulative and in addition to any other penalty provided by law, including any remedies which may be sought in a civil action. The provisions of this chapter shall not be construed as limiting any party’s right to obtain relief to which he or she may be entitled at law or in equity.
C. Notices of Violation and Administrative Fine. If the department determines that a landlord or tenant has violated this chapter, the department may issue notices of violation and administrative fine in accordance with the authority and procedures set forth in Chapter 1.16 BGMC.
D. Administrative Appeals and Judicial Review.
1. Administrative Appeal. Any landlord or tenant who receives a notice of administrative fine may request an administrative hearing before a hearing officer in accordance with Chapter 1.16 BGMC.
2. Judicial Review of Hearing Officer Decision. Any landlord or tenant may seek judicial review of a hearing officer’s decision pertaining to the imposition of an administrative fine in accordance with Chapter 1.16 BGMC. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.100 Remedies.
A. Civil Liability. Any tenant, or any other person or entity acting on behalf of the tenant who will fairly and adequately represent the tenant’s interest, including the city, is authorized to bring a civil action and/or proceeding in a court of competent jurisdiction for violation of this chapter, for civil penalties, injunctive, declaratory and other equitable relief, restitution and reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs and may take such other steps as necessary to enforce this chapter. The court may award reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs to a landlord who prevails in any such action if the court determines that the tenant’s action was frivolous.
B. Civil Penalty. Any person violating any of the provisions or failing to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter, may be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 for each violation.
C. Criminal Penalty. Any person violating any of the provisions or failing to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and punished by a fine of not more than $1,000, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more than six months, or by both.
D. Defense to Eviction. A tenant may assert as an affirmative defense a landlord’s failure to comply with the provisions of this chapter in any action by a landlord to recover possession of a rental unit.
E. Each violation of any provision of this chapter, and each day during which any such violation is committed, permitted or continued, shall constitute a separate offense.
F. The above remedies are not exclusive and do not preclude the city or any tenant from seeking other remedies or penalties provided by applicable law. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.110 Waiver.
Any waiver of rights under this chapter shall be void as contrary to public policy. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).
5.63.120 Severability.
If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person, property, or circumstance, is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this chapter that can be given effect without the invalid provision(s) or application, and to this end, the provisions of this chapter are declared to be severable. (Ord. 925 § 3, 2022).