SB749 - Mobilehome parks: closure, cessation, or change of use.

Amended IN Senate May 06, 2025 Amended IN Senate March 25, 2025 CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION Senate Bill No. 749 Introduced by Senator Allen (Coauthor: Senator Wahab) February 21, 2025 An act to amend Section Sections 798.56 and 798.62 of the Civil Code, and to add Section 65863.15 to the Government Code, relating to housing. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 749, as amended, Allen. Mobilehome parks: closure, cessation, or change of use. The Mobilehome Parks Act provides for the regulation of mobilehomes and related vehicle parks by the Department of Housing and Community Development. The Mobilehome Residency Law governs the terms and conditions of residency in mobilehome parks, and requires management of a mobilehome park to offer the previous homeowner a right of first refusal to a renewed tenancy in the park if the park is destroyed due to a fire or other natural disaster and management elects to rebuild the park in the same location. Existing law defines “management” to mean the owner of a mobilehome park or an agent or representative authorized to act on their behalf in connection with matters relating to a tenancy in the park and “previous homeowner” to mean a homeowner with a valid tenancy in a mobilehome park at the time of a wildfire or other natural disaster. authorizes the management of a mobilehome park to terminate a tenancy for, among other reasons, a change of use of the park or any portion of the park if certain requirements are met. If the change of use does not require any local governmental permits, existing law requires the written notice of termination of tenancy to disclose and describe in detail the nature of the change of use, and to be given 12 months or more before the management’s determination that a change of use will occur. This bill would provide that previous homeowners shall receive notice in the same manner as a current homeowner of the mobilehome park according to specified notice provisions, as applicable. The bill would also provide that previous homeowners are not obligated to pay rent during the time at which they are unable to live in the mobilehome park following a wildfire or other natural disaster. The Planning and Zoning Law requires an owner of an assisted housing development, before the termination of a subsidy contract, the expiration of rental restrictions, or prepayment on an assisted housing development, to provide certain notices of the proposed change to each affected tenant household residing in the assisted housing development and affected public entities, as specified. Existing law defines “affected public entities” as the mayor or chair of the board of supervisors, as applicable, in which the assisted housing development is located, the appropriate local public housing authority, if any, and the Department of Housing and Community Development. This bill would, would delete the above-described notification requirements applicable to a change of use of a mobilehome park that does not require any local governmental permits, and would revise the Planning and Zoning Law to, instead, require management, at least 12 months and at least 6 months prior to the anticipated date of closure, cessation, or change of use of a mobilehome park, require management of a mobilehome park to provide notices of the proposed change to each affected tenant, prospective tenant, and affected public entities, as provided. The bill would require the Director of Housing and Community Development to approve forms to be used by management to comply with these provisions, and would require management to use the approved forms once the director has approved the forms. The bill would provide for injunctive relief to any affected public entity or affected tenant, including a resident organization, as defined, who is aggrieved by a violation of these provisions. The Planning and Zoning Law prohibits an owner from terminating a subsidy contract or prepayment of a mortgage unless the owner or its agent has provided specified entities an opportunity to submit an offer to purchase the development, as specified. The Planning and Zoning Law also requires, before the conversion of a mobilehome park to another use, except as specified, or before closure of a mobilehome park or cessation of use of the land as a mobilehome park, the person or entity proposing the change in use to file a report on the impact of the conversion, closure, or cessation of use of the mobilehome park. Existing law requires the impact report to include a replacement and relocation plan that adequately mitigates the impact upon the ability of the displaced residents of the mobilehome park to find adequate housing in a mobilehome park. Existing law requires the person proposing the change in use to provide a copy of the report to a resident of each mobilehome in the mobilehome park at least 60 days before a hearing on the report, as specified. The Mobilehome Residency Law requires management of a mobilehome park to offer the previous homeowner, as defined, a right of first refusal to a renewed tenancy in the park if the park is destroyed due to a fire or other natural disaster and management elects to rebuild the park in the same location. This bill would revise the Planning and Zoning Law to prohibit management of a mobilehome park from pursuing closure, cessation, or change of use of the mobilehome park unless management has provided resident organizations and certain nonprofit organizations and public agencies an opportunity to submit an offer to purchase, according to specified procedures. The bill would require an entity to be certified by the Department of Housing and Community Development to qualify as a purchaser under these provisions, and would require the department to, among various other duties, establish a process for that certification and maintain and update a list of certified entities. The bill would require a qualified entity that elects to purchase the mobilehome park to make a bona fide offer within 270 days of the notice of the opportunity to submit an offer that, among other things, certifies under penalty of perjury that the entity has been certified by the department. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would provide that any affected tenant, resident organization, qualified entity, or affected public entity, as specified, may enforce these provisions either in law or in equity. The bill would provide that previous homeowners shall receive specified notices required under certain provisions of the Planning and Zoning Law, as revised by the bill as described above, the Mobilehome Residency Law, and the Mobilehome Parks Act, as applicable, in the same manner as a current homeowner of the mobilehome park. The bill would also provide that previous homeowners are not obligated to pay rent during the time at which they are unable to live in the mobilehome park following a wildfire or other natural disaster. 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 a specified reason. Digest Key Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: YES Bill Text The people of the State of California do enact as follows: SECTION 1. Section 798.56 of the Civil Code, as amended by Section 2 of Chapter 395 of the Statutes of 2024, is amended to read: 798.56. A tenancy shall be terminated by the management only for one or more of the following reasons: (a) Failure of the homeowner or resident to comply with a local ordinance or state law or regulation relating to mobilehomes within a reasonable time after the homeowner receives a notice of noncompliance from the appropriate governmental agency. (b) Conduct by the homeowner or resident, upon the park premises, that constitutes a substantial annoyance to other homeowners or residents. (c) (1) Conviction of the homeowner or resident for prostitution, for a violation of subdivision (d) of Section 243, paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), or subdivision (b), of Section 245, Section 288, or Section 451, of the Penal Code, or a felony controlled substance offense, if the act resulting in the conviction was committed anywhere on the premises of the mobilehome park, including, but not limited to, within the homeowner’s mobilehome. (2) However, the tenancy may not be terminated for the reason specified in this subdivision if the person convicted of the offense has permanently vacated, and does not subsequently reoccupy, the mobilehome. (d) Failure of the homeowner or resident to comply with a reasonable rule or regulation of the park that is part of the rental agreement or any amendment thereto. No act or omission of the homeowner or resident shall constitute a failure to comply with a reasonable rule or regulation unless and until the management has given the homeowner written notice of the alleged rule or regulation violation and the homeowner or resident has failed to adhere to the rule or regulation within seven days. However, if a homeowner has been given a written notice of an alleged violation of the same rule or regulation on three or more occasions within a 12-month period after the homeowner or resident has violated that rule or regulation, no written notice shall be required for a subsequent violation of the same rule or regulation. Nothing in this subdivision shall relieve the management from its obligation to demonstrate that a rule or regulation has in fact been violated. (e) (1) Nonpayment of rent, utility charges, or reasonable incidental service charges; provided that the amount due has been unpaid for a period of at least five days from its due date, and provided that the homeowner shall be given a three-day written notice subsequent to that five-day period to pay the amount due or to vacate the tenancy. For purposes of this subdivision, the five-day period does not include the date the payment is due. The three-day written notice shall be given to the homeowner in the manner prescribed by Section 1162 of the Code of Civil Procedure. A copy of this notice shall be sent to the persons or entities specified in subdivision (b) of Section 798.55 within 10 days after notice is delivered to the homeowner. If the homeowner cures the default, the notice need not be sent. The notice may be given at the same time as the 60 days’ notice required for termination of the tenancy. A three-day notice given pursuant to this subdivision shall contain the following provisions printed in at least 12-point boldface type at the top of the notice, with the appropriate number written in the blank: “Warning: This notice is the (insert number) three-day notice for nonpayment of rent, utility charges, or other reasonable incidental services that has been served upon you in the last 12 months. Pursuant to Civil Code Section 798.56 (e) (5), if you have been given a three-day notice to either pay rent, utility charges, or other reasonable incidental services or to vacate your tenancy on three or more occasions within a 12-month period, management is not required to give you a further three-day period to pay rent or vacate the tenancy before your tenancy can be terminated.” (2) Payment by the homeowner prior to the expiration of the three-day notice period shall cure a default under this subdivision. If the homeowner does not pay prior to the expiration of the three-day notice period, the homeowner shall remain liable for all payments due up until the time the tenancy is vacated. (3) Payment by the legal owner, as defined in Section 18005.8 of the Health and Safety Code, any junior lienholder, as defined in Section 18005.3 of the Health and Safety Code, or the registered owner, as defined in Section 18009.5 of the Health and Safety Code, if other than the homeowner, on behalf of the homeowner prior to the expiration of 30 calendar days following the mailing of the notice to the legal owner, each junior lienholder, and the registered owner provided in subdivision (b) of Section 798.55, shall cure a default under this subdivision with respect to that payment. (4) Cure of a default of rent, utility charges, or reasonable incidental service charges by the legal owner, any junior lienholder, or the registered owner, if other than the homeowner, as provided by this subdivision, may not be exercised more than twice during a 12-month period. (5) If a homeowner has been given a three-day notice to pay the amount due or to vacate the tenancy on three or more occasions within the preceding 12-month period and each notice includes the provisions specified in paragraph (1), no written three-day notice shall be required in the case of a subsequent nonpayment of rent, utility charges, or reasonable incidental service charges. In that event, the management shall give written notice to the homeowner in the manner prescribed by Section 1162 of the Code of Civil Procedure to remove the mobilehome from the park within a period of not less than 60 days, which period shall be specified in the notice. A copy of this notice shall be sent to the legal owner, each junior lienholder, and the registered owner of the mobilehome, if other than the homeowner, as specified in subdivision (b) of Section 798.55, by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested, within 10 days after notice is sent to the homeowner. (6) When a copy of the 60 days’ notice described in paragraph (5) is sent to the legal owner, each junior lienholder, and the registered owner of the mobilehome, if other than the homeowner, the default may be cured by any of them on behalf of the homeowner prior to the expiration of 30 calendar days following the mailing of the notice, if all of the following conditions exist: (A) A copy of a three-day notice sent pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 798.55 to a homeowner for the nonpayment of rent, utility charges, or reasonable incidental service charges was not sent to the legal owner, junior lienholder, or registered owner, of the mobilehome, if other than the homeowner, during the preceding 12-month period. (B) The legal owner, junior lienholder, or registered owner of the mobilehome, if other than the homeowner, has not previously cured a default of the homeowner during the preceding 12-month period. (C) The legal owner, junior lienholder, or registered owner, if other than the homeowner, is not a financial institution or mobilehome dealer. If the default is cured by the legal owner, junior lienholder, or registered owner within the 30-day period, the notice to remove the mobilehome from the park described in paragraph (5) shall be rescinded. (f) Condemnation of the park. (g) Change of use of the park or any portion thereof, provided: (1) The management gives the hom [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]