February 20, 2007 (Public Hearing)

You may either comment at the Public Hearing and/or submit written comments. If you would like to submit written comments, it is requested that they be received at the Department no later than 5 p.m. on Wednesday, February 14th, 2007, so that the Commissioners can be mailed your comments and review them prior to the hearing. Written comments may also be submitted at the hearing. Please submit 12 copies of your comments in order to facilitate their distribution. You will be able to address the Commissioners during the public comment period at the hearing. The proposed regulations read as follows below:

A new Part XIII shall be added as follows:

Part XIII – Severance of Housing Facilities Under Ordinance Section 37.2(r

Section 13.10 Severance of Housing Facility-Just Cause Required

(a) A "housing facility" means garage facilities, parking facilities, driveways, storage spaces, laundry rooms, decks, patios, or gardens on the same lot, or kitchen facilities or lobbies in single room occupancy (SRO) hotels, supplied in connection with the use or occupancy of a unit. Such a housing facility may not be severed from the tenancy by the landlord unless one of the just causes listed in Section 13.11 is the landlord's dominant motive for recovering possession of the housing facility and the landlord has complied with the notice requirements set forth in Section 13.12.

(b) The following shall not constitute a severance of a housing facility for purposes of this Section: (1) the temporary removal of a housing facility for ninety (90) or fewer days to perform capital improvement or lead remediation work or necessary repair and maintenance work at the building, including use of the housing facility for keeping equipment and materials used in connection with such work, and (2) the severance of a housing facility that was added after the commencement of the tenancy either as a reasonable accommodation of a tenant's disability requested by the tenant or for no additional consideration. Nothing in this subsection shall affect the right of a tenant to a rent reduction for any substantial decrease in housing services under Rules and Regulations Section 10.10.

Section 13.11 Just Causes Defined

(a) A landlord shall not endeavor to recover possession of a housing facility unless:

(1) The tenant is committing or permitting to exist a nuisance in, or is causing substantial damage to, the housing facility, or in using the housing facility, the tenant is creating a substantial interference with the comfort, safety or enjoyment of the landlord or tenants in the building, and the nature of such nuisance, damage or interference is specifically stated by the landlord in the writing as required by Section 13.12; or

(2) The tenant is using or permitting a housing facility to be used for any illegal purpose; or

(3) The landlord seeks to recover possession in good faith, without ulterior reasons and with honest intent:

(i) For the landlord's reasonable and lawful use for a period of at least 36 continuous months;

(ii) For the reasonable and lawful use of the landlord's grandparents, grandchildren, parents, children, brother or sister, or the landlord's spouse or the spouses of such relations, for a period of at least 36 months, when such relative resides in the building as his or her principal place of residence. For purposes of this Section, the term spouse shall include Domestic Partners as defined in San Francisco Administrative Code Chapter 62.1 through 62.8.

The term landlord shall be defined as an owner of record of at least 25 percent interest in the property. If any housing facility severed under this section is offered again for rent during the tenant's tenancy, the landlord must first provide the tenant with written notice of the right to re-rent the housing facility upon payment of additional rent in the amount of the corresponding rent reduction; or

(4) The landlord seeks to recover possession in good faith for a legitimate purpose in order to demolish or to otherwise permanently remove the housing facility from use and has obtained all the necessary permits on or before the date upon which notice to vacate is given, and does so without ulterior reasons and with honest intent. If any housing facility severed under this section is offered again for rent during the tenant's tenancy, the landlord must first provide the tenant with written notice of the right to re-rent the housing facility upon payment of additional rent in the amount of the corresponding rent reduction; or

(5) The landlord seeks in good faith to temporarily remove the housing facility from use for more than ninety (90) days in order to be able to carry out capital improvements or rehabilitation work, or to use the housing facility for keeping equipment and materials used in connection with capital improvements or rehabilitation work performed at the building, and has obtained all the necessary permits on or before the date upon which notice to vacate is given, and does so without ulterior reasons and with honest intent. On or before the date upon which notice to recover possession of the housing facility is given, the landlord shall advise the tenant in writing that the rehabilitation or capital improvement plans are on file with the Central Permit Bureau of the Department of Building Inspection and that arrangements for reviewing such plans can be made with the Central Permit Bureau. The tenant will vacate the housing facility only for the minimum time required to do the capital improvement or rehabilitation work. Immediately upon completion of the work, the landlord shall provide written notice to the tenant of the right to re-use the housing facility, and the corresponding rent reduction shall terminate; or

(6) The landlord seeks in good faith to temporarily recover the housing facility for more than ninety (90) days in order to carry out lead remediation or abatement work, as required by San Francisco Health Code Articles 11 or 26. The tenant will vacate the unit only for the minimum time required to do the work.

(b) In no event shall the tenant's failure to comply with a notice to sever a housing facility under subsections 13.11(a) above be grounds for recovery of possession of the tenant's rental unit. Nothing in this Section shall otherwise affect the rights of a landlord to recover possession of a rental unit pursuant to Ordinance Section 37.9(a). No civil or criminal liability under Ordinance Section 37.9(e) or (f) shall be imposed upon a landlord who seeks to sever a housing facility in good faith for a just cause listed in Section 13.11 above.

(c) An owner who resides in the same rental unit with his or her tenant may recover possession of a housing facility without just cause as required under Section 13.10 above.

Section 13.12 Notice Requirements

(a) At least 30 days prior to severing a housing facility, the landlord must serve the tenant a written notice of change in terms of the tenancy stating one of the just causes under Section 13.11 above and the amount of the corresponding rent reduction for the housing facility. The notice shall also state that advice regarding the notice is available from the Residential Rent Stabilization and Arbitration Board, and that if the tenant contests either the recovery of the housing facility or the amount of the corresponding rent reduction stated in the notice, the tenant or the landlord may file a petition with the Board to determine whether just cause exists for recovery of the housing facility and/or the amount of the corresponding rent reduction. A copy of the notice shall be filed with the Board within ten (10) days following service of the notice on the tenant.

(b) A landlord or tenant may file a petition with the Board to determine whether just cause as stated in the notice exists for severance of a housing facility and/or the amount of the corresponding rent reduction. Such a petition shall be filed on a form supplied by the Board. However, nothing in this Section shall prevent a landlord, after expiration of the notice period, from seeking possession of the housing facility through a civil action in court.

Section 13.13 Reports of Alleged Wrongful Severance

The Board shall adopt a form for reports of alleged wrongful severance of a housing facility. Upon submission to the Board of a completed Report of Alleged Wrongful Eviction, the Board shall send a notice acknowledging receipt of the report and summarizing the rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants regarding severance of housing facilities to both landlord and tenant, without fee.

Existing Section 12.20 shall be amended as follows (strikethrough for deletions and underline for additions):

Section 12.20 Evictions under Section 37.9(a)(2)

(a) Unilaterally Imposed Obligations and Covenants

For purposes of an eviction under Section 37.9(a)(2) of the Ordinance, a landlord shall not endeavor to recover possession of a rental unit because of the tenant's alleged violation of an obligation or covenant of the tenancy, if such obligation or covenant was unilaterally imposed by the landlord and not agreed to by the tenant and either was not included, or is not materially the same as an obligation or covenant in the rental agreement mutually agreed to by the parties. The foregoing shall not apply to: (1) changes in obligations or covenants that are not material; (2) changes in material obligations or covenants required by law or to protect the health, safety and quiet enjoyment of the occupants of the building or adjoining properties; or (3) material changes that have resulted in a substantial decrease in housing services with respect to garage, storage space, or access to common areas for which a commensurate rent reduction has been provided by the landlord; and (43) rent increases or other changes in the terms of a tenancy authorized under the Rent Ordinance and Rules and Regulations.