Consumer Legal Remedies Act

Existing law, the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, provides that specified unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices undertaken by any person in a transaction intended to result or that result in the sale or lease of goods or services to any consumer are unlawful. Existing law includes the home solicitation of a consumer who is a senior citizen as an unfair method of competition and unfair or deceptive act or practices if a loan is made encumbering the primary residence of the consumer for purposes of paying for home improvements and the transaction is part of a pattern or practice in violation of specified provisions of federal law. Existing law, known commonly as the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, authorizes a public agency, by making specified findings, to authorize public agency officials and property owners to enter into voluntary contractual assessments and voluntary special taxes to finance the installation of distributed generation renewable energy sources or energy or water efficiency improvements that are permanently fixed to real property. Existing law defines a "program administrator" as an entity administering a PACE program on behalf of, and with the written consent of, a public agency, and prescribes a variety of requirements, authorizations, and prohibitions in connection with PACE program contract assessments and the actions of program administrators. Existing law, the California Financing Law (CFL) , provides for the licensing and regulation of PACE program administrators by the Commissioner of Financial Protection and Innovation and prohibits a person from engaging in the business of a PACE solicitor unless that person is enrolled with a program administrator, as specified. Existing law prohibits a program administrator from executing an assessment contract, and generally prohibits work under a home improvement contract that is financed by a PACE assessment contract, unless specified criteria are satisfied and the program administrator makes a reasonable good faith determination that the property owner has a reasonable ability to pay the annual payment obligations for the PACE assessment. This bill would extend the above-described provisions of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act relating to home solicitations of a senior citizen where a loan encumbers the primary residence of the consumer for purposes of paying for home improvement to also apply to assessments. Under the bill, if transactions are part of a pattern or practice in violation of specified provisions relating to the PACE program, or specified provisions regulating PACE program administrators under the California Financing Law, they would be unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts or practices.