State Housing Law: enforcement response to complaints.

Existing law, the State Housing Law, a violation of which is a crime, establishes statewide construction and occupancy standards for buildings used for human habitation. Existing law authorizes a city or county to designate and charge a specified department or officer with the enforcement of the State Housing Law, the building standards published in the California Building Standards Code, or any other rules and regulations adopted pursuant to the State Housing Law for the protection of the public health, safety, and general welfare. Existing law deems a building, portion of a building, or premises on which a building is located to be a substandard building if any one of specified conditions exists to the extent that it endangers the life, limb, health, property, safety, or welfare of the public or its occupants. Existing law deems a building, portion of a building, or premises on which a building is located to be in violation of the State Housing Law if it contains lead hazards, as specified, that are likely to endanger the health of the public or the occupants. This bill would, beginning July 1, 2021, require a city or county that receives a complaint of a substandard building or a lead hazard violation, as described above, from a tenant, resident, or occupant, or an agent of a tenant, resident, or occupant, to inspect the building, portion of the building intended for human occupancy, or premises of the building, cite the lead hazard violations or the building, portion of the building intended for human occupancy, or premises on which the building is located as being substandard, as applicable, and provide free copies of the inspection report and citations issued, if any, to the tenant, resident, occupant, or agent, and to all potentially affected tenants, residents, occupants, or the agents of those individuals, as specified. The bill would prohibit a city or county from placing any condition on either the inspection or the citation, as specified. The bill would prohibit a city or county from refusing to communicate with a tenant, resident, occupant, or agent regarding a matter covered by this bill. By imposing new duties on local government officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for specified reasons.