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RELOCATION ASSISTANCE
ORDINANCE ▼
Santa Monica Municipal Code
4.36.010 Definitions.
4.36.020 When relocation fee required.
4.36.030 Notice to tenants being displaced.
4.36.040 Amount of relocation fee.
4.36.050 Additional fee for required counseling.
4.36.060 Deposit of relocation fee into escrow.
4.36.070 Payment to displaced tenants.
4.36.080 Physical relocation in lieu of fee.
4.36.090 Remedies.
4.36.100 Relocation due to necessary code enforcement.
4.36.110 Applicability of relocation assistance requirements
as provided in this Chapter.
4.36.120 Inapplicability of Chapter to certain evictions.
4.36.130 Coordination with other relocation requirements.
4.36.010 Definitions.
For purposes of this Chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the following meaning:
(a) Disabled Person. Any person who is receiving benefits from a federal, state, or local government, or from a private entity on account of a permanent disability that prevents the person from engaging in regular, full-time employment.
(b) Displaced Tenant. Any tenant who vacates a rental housing unit in the City for any of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020.
(c) Landlord. Any owner, lessor, sublessor, or any other person entitled to receive rent for the use and occupancy of a rental housing unit, or any agent, representative or successor of any of the foregoing.
(d) Minor Child. Any person younger than eighteen (18) years of age.
(e) Rental Housing Unit. A housing unit in the City of Santa Monica including a room in a single family home, hotel or motel, rooming house or apartment, single family home, mobile home or mobile home space, trailer or trailer space, offered for rent. "Rental housing unit" does not include any unit occupied pursuant to an innkeeper-guest relationship.
(f) Senior Citizen. Any person sixty-two (62) years of age or older.
(g) Tenant. Any tenant, subtenant, lessee, sublessee, or any other person occupying a rental housing unit pursuant to a rental housing agreement. (Prior code Sec. 4850; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90)
4.36.020 When relocation fee required.
(a) A relocation fee shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter by any landlord who terminates or causes the termination of a tenancy for any of the following reasons:
(1) The landlord seeks to withdraw all rental housing units from the rental housing market as provided in Government Code Sections 7060 et seq.
(2) The landlord seeks to recover possession of a rental housing unit pursuant to Section 1806(h) or Section 1806(i) of the City Charter.
(3) The landlord seeks to recover possession to demolish or otherwise remove a rental housing unit from residential rental housing use, including units that were illegally converted to residential use, after having obtained all proper permits from the City, if any such permits are required.
(b) A relocation fee shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter to a displaced tenant who serves a landlord with a notice to terminate tenancy after having received written notice from either the landlord or the Santa Monica Rent Control Board that the landlord has filed a Notice of Intent to Withdraw Residential Rental Units pursuant to Government Code Section 7060.4 and Santa Monica Rent Control Board Regulation 16002(a) or an Application for Removal Permit pursuant to Santa Monica Charter Section 1803(t).
(c) The fee required by this Chapter shall be due and payable to a displaced tenant whether or not the landlord actually utilizes the rental housing unit for the purposes stated in the notice of eviction.
4.36.030 Notice to tenants being displaced.
(a) Except when subsection (b) of this Section is applicable, any notice to terminate a tenancy which is served upon tenants for any of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020 shall be accompanied by the following on the form provided by the City:
(1) A written statement of the rights and obligations of tenants and landlords under this Chapter;
(2) A written statement informing the tenants that the required relocation fee has been placed in an escrow account or other account approved by the City;
(3) A written statement that the landlord has complied with Section 4.36.050. If the landlord has complied with Section 4.36.050 by obtaining a City approval of a Displacement Plan, a copy of the Displacement Plan shall accompany the written statement.
(b) When a landlord seeks to withdraw all rental housing units from the rental market and terminate all tenancies pursuant to Government Code Section 7060 et seq., any notice of termination served on a tenant who the landlord has determined to be ineligible for relocation assistance because the tenant does not qualify as a lower income household as defined by Health and Safety Code Section 50079.5 shall be accompanied by a City form informing the tenant of the landlord's determination of ineligibility. Upon receipt of this notice, any tenant who disagrees with this determination shall immediately provide his/her landlord with documentation demonstrating eligibility if the tenant has not already done so. The landlord shall immediately review this information and reassess his/her determination of tenant ineligibility. If the landlord
determines that the tenant is eligible, the landlord shall immediately comply with the requirements of subsection (a) of this Section. A landlord's failure to have provided the information required by subsection (a) of this Section at the time of service of the notice of termination shall not be considered a violation of this Chapter if the landlord's determination of tenant ineligibility was made in good faith and with due diligence.
(c) A landlord shall comply with the provisions of this Section within two working days after receiving a tenant's notice to terminate tenancy as set forth in Section 4.36.020(b). (Prior code Sec. 4852; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90; Ord. No. 1765CCS Sec. 1, adopted 8/9/94)
4.36.040 Amount of relocation fee.
The amount of relocation fee payable pursuant to the provisions of this Chapter shall be established periodically by resolution of the City Council in accordance with the following formula: 1990 relocation fee adjusted for inflation by the percentage change in the Rent of Primary Residence component of the CPI-W Index for the Los Angeles/Riverside/Orange County area, as published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, between March 1990 and the date of preparation of the City Council resolution, rounded to the nearest $50.00.
(a) [The following updated fee rates were set by Council Resolution on 11/16/99]
Housing Unit Size Relocation Fee
Bachelor or Single $3,400.00
One Bedroom 4,250.00
Two Bedroom 4,800.00
Three Bedroom 5,950.00
Four or more Bedrooms 6,250.00
(b) If a tenant is evicted from more than one rental housing unit on a property, the tenant shall not be entitled to receive separate relocation fees for each rental housing unit. The tenant shall receive a single relocation fee based on the combined total number of bedrooms in the rental housing units from which the tenant is being evicted. If one of the rental housing units is a bachelor or single unit, it shall be counted as a one bedroom unit for purposes of determining the amount of the relocation fee (e.g., a tenant who is evicted from a bachelor rental housing unit and a one bedroom rental housing unit would receive relocation benefits for a two bedroom unit).
(c) If the rental housing unit from which the tenant is being evicted is furnished, two hundred fifty dollars shall be deducted from the amount set forth in subsection (a) of this Section. For purposes of this subsection, a rental housing unit shall be considered to be furnished if the landlord has provided substantial furnishings in each occupied room of the rental housing unit.
(d) If one or more of the displaced tenants is a senior citizen or disabled person, or is a tenant with whom a minor child resides, and the displaced tenant(s) occupied the rental housing unit on or before November 17, 1999, an additional one thousand dollars shall be added to the amount set forth in subsection (a) of this Section.
4.36.050 Additional fee for required counseling.
(a) For each rental housing unit from which tenants are displaced for any of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020(a), prior to service of a notice to terminate tenancy, the landlord shall pay a fee to the City in the amount of two hundred fifty dollars to be used by City to pay for counseling or other assistance required by displaced tenants as a result of displacement.
(b) In lieu of the fee required by subsection (a) of this Section, a landlord may prepare a Displacement Plan which must be approved by the Community and Economic Development Department prior to service of a notice to terminate tenancy. The Displacement Plan shall identify the special needs of the displaced tenants, identify the types of assistance that will
be provided and include a commitment to pay for any such assistance. At the time of submitting the Displacement Plan to the City for review and approval, the landlord shall pay a fee to the City for such review and approval in the amount of one hundred dollars for each rental housing unit. (Prior code Sec. 4854; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90)
4.36.060 Deposit of relocation fee into escrow.
(a) The relocation fee required by this Chapter shall be placed in an escrow account prior to service by a landlord upon any tenant of a notice to terminate tenancy for one of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020(a) or within two working days of service by a tenant upon a landlord of notice to terminate tenancy as set forth in Section 4.36.020(b). All costs of an escrow opened pursuant to the provisions of this Section shall be borne by the landlord. Escrow instructions shall be approved by the City.
(b) The escrow instructions shall provide that monies deposited in the escrow account shall only be distributed to displaced tenant in accordance with the instructions of the landlord and that no monies deposited in escrow may be returned to the landlord without the written approval of the City.
(c) In lieu of deposit of the relocation fee in an escrow account, a landlord may deposit the fee in another account approved by the City. (Prior code Sec. 4855; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90)
4.36.070 Payment to displaced tenants.
(a) Within two working days of the written request by the tenant, the landlord shall deliver written instructions to the escrow holder to distribute all or a portion of the relocation fee to a third party providing moving or replacement housing to the tenant. The instructions shall direct the escrow holder to make the distribution within three working days of delivery of the instructions.
(b) Within two working days of the vacation of the rental housing unit, the landlord shall deliver written instruction the escrow holder to distribute the amount of the remaining relocation fee to the displaced tenant or displaced tenants such rental housing unit. The instruction shall direct the escrow holder to make the distribution within three working days of delivery of the instructions.
(c) The entire fee shall be paid to a tenant who is the only displaced tenant in a rental housing unit. If a rental housing unit is occupied by two or more displaced tenants, the relocation fee shall be paid to all displaced tenants jointly. In no event shall a landlord be liable to pay a total amount more than the fee required by Section 4.36.040 of this Chapter for one rental housing unit, and the landlord shall have no responsibility or liability for disputes between displaced tenants over allocation of the relocation fee between such displaced tenants.
(d) In the event the landlord has been required to commence a legal action to recover possession of the rental housing unit and a decision is rendered or a judgment has been entered in favor of the landlord prior to the tenant's vacation of the unit, the landlord may instruct the escrow holder to withhold from distribution to the displaced tenant or displaced tenants of such rental housing units any unsatisfied monetary award provided in such decision or judgment in favor of the landlord. Upon the judgment becoming final, the City shall authorize the escrow holder to return to the landlord the amount withheld. If no decision has been rendered or no judgment has been entered for a monetary award in favor of the landlord prior to the tenant's vacation of the unit, the landlord must authorize the distribution of the entire relocation fee in accordance with Section 4.36.070. (Prior code Sec. 4856; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90; Ord. No. 1518CCS, adopted 3/27/90)
4.36.080 Physical relocation in lieu of fee.
(a) In lieu of the relocation fee required by Sections 4.36.040 and 4.36.050, the landlord may, at the landlord's option, relocate the displaced tenant into a comparable replacement housing unit satisfactory to the tenant, in which event the landlord shall be liable only for the actual costs of relocating the tenant, except that this Section shall not abrogate any rights
already created by Section 1806(h)(2) of the City Charter. A tenant shall not unreasonably withhold approval of a comparable replacement rental housing unit offered by the landlord. For purposes of this Section, a replacement unit shall be comparable to the existing unit if both units are comparable in size, price, location, proximity to medical and recreational facilities, parks,
community centers, shops, transportation, schools, churches and synagogues, amenities, and if the tenant desires, location of the rental unit in the City of Santa Monica.
(b) If a tenant displaced for the reason set forth in Section 4.36.020(a)(2) elects to occupy a noncomparable vacant unit on the same property from which that tenant is being displaced, pursuant to the terms set forth in Section 1806(h) of the City Charter, in lieu of the relocation fee required by Sections 4.36.040 and 4.36.050, the landlord shall only be liable for the actual costs of relocating the tenant. (Prior code Sec. 4857; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90)
4.36.090 Remedies.
(a) If any action by a landlord to recover possession of a rental housing unit for one of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020, the landlord shall allege and prove compliance with this Chapter.
(b) Any landlord who fails to provide relocation assistance as required by Sections 4.36.040, 4.36.050, 4.36.070, and 4.36.100 of this Chapter shall be liable in civil action to the tenant to whom such assistance is due for damages in the amount of the relocation fee the landlord has failed to pay, a civil penalty in the amount of five hundred dollars and reasonable attorney's fees and costs as determined by the court. The court may also award punitive damages in a proper case as defined by Civil Code Section 3294. Any person, including the City, may enforce the provisions of this Chapter by means of a civil action.
(c) Any person violating any of the provisions or failing to comply with the requirements of this Chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor.
(d) No landlord shall attempt to secure from a tenant any waiver of any provision of this Chapter. Any agreement, whether written or oral, whereby any provision of this Chapter is waived, shall be deemed against public policy and shall be void.
4.36.100
Temporary relocation mandated by code compliance or by government order.
(a) If a landlord is required to temporarily recover possession of a rental housing unit in order to comply with housing, health, building, or safety laws of the State of California or the City of Santa Monica, or if a tenant is required to vacate a unit upon the order of any government officer or agency, the landlord shall provide relocation benefits to the displaced tenant. These relocation benefits shall include both temporary housing as provided in subsection (b) of this Section and moving costs as provided in subsection (c) of this Section. In the event that the tenancy of such person is subsequently terminated for one of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020, the landlord shall pay the relocation fee required by Sections 4.36.040 and 4.36.050 and the landlord shall have no further obligation for temporary accommodations under this Section.
(b) The type of temporary housing required by this Section is dependent on the duration of the tenant’s displacement. If a tenant will be displaced for a period less than thirty (30) days, the landlord shall relocate the tenant to a motel or hotel accommodation which is safe, sanitary, located in Santa Monica, and contains standard amenities such as a telephone. The landlord shall bear the full cost of this accommodation and also provide the tenant with vouchers for food, laundry, and pet accommodations. If the displacement will be for a period of thirty days or greater, the temporary housing shall be rental housing. The rental housing shall be comparable to the tenant’s existing housing in location, size, number of bedrooms, accessibility, type and quality of construction, proximity to services and institutions upon which the displaced tenant depends, and amenities, including the allowance for pets should the tenant have pets. Should the temporary housing be more expensive than the tenant’s existing housing, the landlord shall be responsible for the cost differential between the rent that the displaced tenant pays for his/her unit and the cost of the temporary housing. The landlord and the tenant may mutually agree upon a housing type other than the temporary housing required by this subsection.
(c) Moving costs shall consist of all actual reasonable costs of moving, including, transportation of personal property, packing and unpacking, insurance of personal property while in transit, compensation for any damage occurring during moving, storage of personal property, disconnection and reconnection of utility services and any other additional costs attributable to a tenant’s special needs, including needs resulting from disability or age.
(d) The displacement and relocation of a tenant pursuant to this Section shall not terminate the tenancy of the displaced tenant. The displaced tenant shall have the right to reoccupy his/her unit upon the completion of the work necessary for the unit to comply with housing, health, building or safety laws or any governmental order and the tenant shall retain all rights of tenancy that existed prior to the displacement.
4.36.110
Applicability of relocation assistance requirements as provided in this Chapter.
(a) The relocation assistance requirements set forth in this Chapter shall apply to any tenant in possession of a rental housing unit on or after the effective date of the ordinance amending this Chapter, including any tenant who has been served with a notice to terminate tenancy for one of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020(a) prior to the effective date of the ordinance amending this Chapter and has not yet vacated the unit.
(b) The landlord shall comply with the requirements contained in Sections 4.36.030, 4.36.040, 4.36.050, and 4.36.060 within five days of the effective date of the ordinance amending this Chapter in the event that a notice to terminate tenancy for one of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020(a) has been served on a tenant or a notice to terminate tenancy pursuant to Section 4.36.020(b) has been served on a landlord prior to the effective date of the ordinance amending this Chapter. In the event that on the effective date of this Section, a landlord has complied with the provisions of Section 4.36.060 previously in effect, but has not yet received a written request from a tenant for distribution of the fee pursuant to Section 4.36.070, the landlord shall place in escrow the additional amount of relocation fee required by Section 4.36.040 within five working days of the effective date of this Section.
(c) Nothing in this Chapter shall limit the amount of the relocation fee that the City Council may require under Government Code Section 65863.7. (Prior code Sec. 4860; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90)
4.36.120 Inapplicability of Chapter to certain evictions.
(a) Notwithstanding Section 4.36.110, the requirements set forth in this Chapter shall not apply to any tenant whose tenancy is terminated pursuant to a lawful notice to terminate tenancy pursuant to Section 1806(h) of the City Charter served on or before June 10, 1986.
(b) Section 4.36.100 shall not be applicable if the displacement and relocation of the tenant is the result of an earthquake or other natural disaster.
(c) Except as provided in Section 4.36.030(b), the requirements set forth in this Chapter shall not apply to any tenant whose tenancy is terminated or caused to be terminated on the ground that the landlord seeks to withdraw all rental housing units from the rental market as provided in Government Code Section 7060 et seq., unless the tenant qualifies as a lower income household pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 50079.5.
(d) Section 4.36.100 shall not be applicable if the displacement and relocation of the tenant is necessary to comply with the repair and retrofitting requirements of Municipal Code Chapters 8.60, 8.64, 8.72, 8.76, and 8.80. However, in the event of such displacement, a landlord shall be responsible to pay the displaced tenant the difference between reasonable rent actually paid for comparable temporary accommodations, and the rent which would have been payable to the landlord had the displacement not occurred, for any period of displacement which exceeds the following limits:
(1) For buildings less than five stories in height, one hundred eighty days,
or if asbestos removal is required, two hundred seventy days.
(2) For buildings five stories or more in height, two hundred seventy days,
or if asbestos removal is required, three hundred sixty days.
The Building Officer and Director of Planning and Community Development may jointly authorize a longer time period to complete repair and retrofitting if, prior to displacement, they find that due to circumstances unique to the building, the repair and retrofitting will take longer than the preceding time limits. Additionally, after tenant displacement, the Building Officer and Director of Planning and Community Development may jointly grant a reasonable extension of the time limit if they find that the landlord is proceeding diligently and expeditiously with repair and retrofitting, and that the inability to complete the project within the established time limit is due to the occurrence of events that were reasonably unforeseeable by and beyond the control of the landlord; provided, however, that the landlord's inability to finance such repair and retrofitting shall not be grounds for such an extension.
The displacement and relocation of a tenant for repair and retrofitting pursuant to Municipal Code Chapters 8.60, 8.64, 8.72, 8.76, and 8.80 shall not terminate the tenancy of the displaced tenant. The displaced tenant shall have the right to reoccupy the unit upon the completion of the repairs and retrofitting and shall retain all rights of tenancy that existed before the displacement. This amendment to subsection (d) of this Section is declaratory of existing law.
4.36.130 Coordination with other relocation requirements.
In the event that a landlord is required by any other governmental body to provide relocation benefits to a tenant who receives a notice to terminate tenancy for one of the reasons set forth in Section 4.36.020, such benefits shall be off set against the amount of relocation benefits required by Section 4.36.040. This Chapter shall not apply to any relocation plan approved by agreement by the Rent Control Board on or before June 24, 1986. (Prior code Sec. 4862; amended by Ord. No. 1515CCS, adopted 2/27/90)
