SB 5697 – UTC Rent Control Board

Authorizing the utilities and transportation commission to regulate the rates and services of all persons engaging in the business of acting as a landlord for a mobile home park, manufactured housing community, or manufactured/mobile home community.

Sponsors: Van De Wege, Kuderer, Conway, Hunt, Lovelett, Wilson, C.

Status: DEAD

Summary

• Applies only to Manufactured Housing and it has added the UTC as the governing “rent control board” instead of the “Department of Commerce.”
• Purports to authorize the utilities and transportation commission (UTC) to regulate the rates and services of all persons engaging in the business of acting as a landlord for a manufactured home community/mobile home park.
• Amends RCW 59.20.
• Adds a definition of consumer price index which references the West Region index published in September of the current calendar year.
• Caps annual rent increases as follows (Section 2 (1) (a) and (b)):
  • No increase during first 12 months of tenancy
  • At any time after the first year, increase may not exceed an amount greater than the rate of inflation as measured by the consumer price index
• Contains vacancy control in limited situations where the tenancy is terminated by the landlord [landlord terminating a tenancy may not set rent for the next tenancy in an amount greater than the consumer price index].
• Certain exemptions including (a) full decontrol if the tenant leaves voluntarily and (b) a banked capacity program.
• Expressly removes current law that describes leases having a term of 2 years or more; the intent must be to impair all such existing leases and prohibit new ones that do not conform to this bill.

Talking Points

• Investment in communities will decline and well capitalized buyers will flee.
• Housing will not be more affordable because supply will decline; no NEW communities or sites will be built.
• Infrastructure & amenities will decline as investment declines.
• Rent Control is unconstitutional; cannot be sustained on stories and anecdotes; No Legitimated state interest is established.
• Housing is impacted nationwide by a lack of supply and decline in building over the last decade; states need to reverse this trend not punish current affordable housing providers.
• Bill demonstrates that rent control is meant to be punitive to current owners of affordable housing communities given severe penalties and new bureaucratic reporting requirements.
• Look at California – decades of rent control have not created affordable housing; just the opposite.
• This bill is punitive rent control – cannot be disguised as utility regulation
• Utilities and transportation commission does not have expertise to regulate housing
• This bill singles out Manufactured Housing community providers over all other forms of housing
• Bill Destroys family owned businesses and value created over generations.