San Mateo city officials are examining ways to strengthen tenant protections and oversight of property owners who cause displacement, with the council intent on updating its appeals process and adopting a dangerous building codes ordinance.
The council used its June 20 special meeting to examine the effectiveness of its tenant relocation ordinance, appeals process improvements and examine penalty options. The law, called the Property Owner Obligations with Respect to Tenants Displaced from Unsafe or Substandard Units, was adopted by the City Council in 2019. It requires property owners to provide relocation payments to tenants displaced from their rental unit either because the unit is unpermitted, unsafe to occupy, substandard or in a life-threatening condition due to code violations. Over the past year, the council has been open to strengthening its punishments and the appeals process.
After review, the council directed staff to establish an impartial hearing officer to oversee the administrative appeal procedures. The Community Relations Commission currently handles appeals, but it does not have training or knowledge of technical building codes or health and safety codes. According to a staff report, this has led to the underutilization of administrative penalties for violations. Under the staff proposal, an impartial officer would not be associated with the city and would be experienced with technical building and health safety codes. The officer would lead the appeal procedures, with property owners having the option to appeal a hearing officer’s decision to the council. The final appeal beyond the council would be the San Mateo County Superior Court.
The council also supported adopting a dangerous building code ordinance that comprehensively addresses dangerous buildings that result in relocation. City officials want to switch from its current code language to the 1997 Uniform Code for the Abatement of Dangerous Buildings. The new language would clarify definitions and procedures around buildings that need to be vacated to help tenant relocation situations.
The council unanimously supported staff recommendations aimed at increasing tenant protections. Councilmember Amourence Lee was glad the city already has a robust enforcement process and broad penalty options until further changes occur.
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“It seems like there is a lot of interest from the council on supporting this process as fully as we can, and it’s good to know that we have all these levers at our fingertips,” Lee said.
Since the 2019 ordinance adoption, most property owners have corrected infractions when ordered, with no repeat offender cases. Around nine relocations were temporary, while seven were permanent. Most temporary moves were for mold or pest infestations, while the permanent relocations were due to people living in garages and other uninhabitable areas. The city has used the ordinance to relocate tenants 16 times since 2019. Current penalties include administrative citations, civil penalties, compliance orders, criminal prosecution and injunctive relief.
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