CORRECTED
MINUTES - MOBILEHOME COMMISSION MEETING
______________________
April 23, 2009
| COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: | Jean Brocklebank, 1st District Henry Cleveland, 2nd District William Neighbors, 4th District Rick Halterman, 5th District Bonnie Lund, WMHA Representative |
| COMMISSIONERS ABSENT: | Mary L. Hanley, 3rd District Carol Lerno, GSMOL Representative |
| BOARD OF SUPERVISOR LIAISON REPRESENTATIVE: | Rita Winings, Aide to County Supervisor Leopold |
| COUNTY COUNSEL: | Absent |
| SECRETARY: | Lee Ann Shenkman |
| LEGISLATIVE REPORT: | Jerry Bowles |
| INVITED GUESTS: | Maureen McCarty, Senator Joe Simitian’s Office Ali Spickler, Assemblymember Bill Monning’s Office |
Chair Henry Cleveland called the meeting to order at 9:30 A.M. There were 8 members of the public in the audience. The minutes of the March 26, 2009, meeting were reviewed and upon motion by Commissioner Brocklebank, seconded by Commissioner Lund, the March 26, 2009, minutes were approved.
No additions or deletions.
A. Commissioner Reports
Commissioner Brocklebank reported that she had been invited and attended the Shoreline Estates Mobilehome Park Homeowners’ Association Newcomer’s Tea. She also reported that the County Planning Department performs inspections to determine the number of parking spaces a mobilehome must have (such as when a new two-story mobilehome goes into a park), however, after the home is installed the Department does not do a final inspection to verify that the correct number of parking places has been provided. Commissioner Brocklebank will work with Rita Winings of Supervisor Leopold’s office regarding this issue and will report back next month. Commissioner Cleveland recommended that parties use the online complaint system offered by the Planning Department if there are parking issues in a mobilehome park.
Commissioner Halterman reported that the process of the owners trying to close the Surf and Sand Mobilehome Park in the City of Capitola may happen soon. The City may conduct hearings on the issue in the next 2-3 months.
Commissioner Lund reported that she will not be at the next Commission meeting.
B. Legislation
Ali Spickler of Assemblymember Monning’s office, Maureen McCarty of Senator Simitian’s office, and Jerry Bowles updated the Commission on the following bills:
AB 481 (Ma): This bill is regarding rent control and a homeowner’s principal place of residence. Ms. Spickler stated that this bill was heard on April 20th in committee and it is set for rehearing on May 13th. The County Board of Supervisors agreed at its regular meeting this week to send an opposition letter.
AB 566 (Nava): Ms. Spickler reported that this bill passed through first committee last week and the second hearing has been cancelled at the request of the author. Commissioner Halterman spoke to the author’s office, which said the chair of the committee was concerned with local governments having their own ordinances on non-modified conversions. This bill has been double referred to the Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development (HCD) and to the Local Government Committee. Ms. McCarty stated that if this bill gets out of committee, there is concern that the governor will not sign it.
AB 761 (WMA sponsored): Ms. McCarty reported that a bill similar to this one died on the floor last year, but its chances are better than 50/50 that it will get out of Committee this year; however, it is likely it will not pass in the Senate Judiciary. This bill was referred to Assembly Committee on HCD. Commissioner Halterman explained that this bill would create statewide vacancy decontrol, which means that what happened to rent control in the City of Santa Cruz is what would happen statewide. This bill is up for hearing on April 29th; therefore if members of the public want to write letters to oppose this bill they should write them this week. The letters should be directed to Assembly Committee on Housing and Community Development, P. O. Box 942849-0103, Sacramento, CA 94249-0103.
AB 869 (Mendoza): This bill has to do with park manager certification. Ms. McCarty reported that this bill will be heard on April 29, 2009, but no one knows what will be on this bill. It failed passage in the Assembly HCD Committee 2-2 and was granted reconsideration. This bill is sponsored by GSMOL and has park owner support, however, Mr. Bowles was not certain if it had WMA support.
SB 23 (Padilla): This bill is scheduled for the Senate Transportation & Housing Committee for hearing on April 28, 2009, which is a Committee that Senator Simitian sits on. He currently has no opinion on this bill because it will be amended many times before it gets to him. Currently, this bill requires that, on or after September 1, 2010, mobilehome parks and special occupancy parks must adopt and post in a conspicuous place in the park an emergency preparedness plan that may include the 1997 plan adopted by the State Office of Emergency Services or any subsequent version. A responsible person in each park shall be designated by the park to be familiar with the plan, and parks shall notify new and existing residents of where the plan can be accessed. The bill states that HCD or a designated local enforcement agency may determine whether a park is in compliance with these requirements. SB 23 also provides that a park operator shall not be responsible for the physical evacuation of residents from their homes in an emergency; individual residents shall be responsible for themselves. Jerrry Bowles reported that this bill is supported by park owners and park residents, so it may go through.
SB 224 (Correa): The state’s CalHome program provides loans and grants to help lower-income homeowners purchase or rehabilitate their homes, including mobilehomes. This bill provides that local agencies administering these state funds cannot discriminate, in their underwriting criteria, in making loans or grants to low-income homeowners solely on the basis that the home is a mobilehome or manufactured home or that it is located in a mobilehome park. The bill also clarifies that ignition resistant exterior components, now required by the Department of Housing (HCD) as the result of recent wildfires for mobilehomes located in or outside mobilehome parks in wildfire urban interface zones, shall be eligible as “rehabilitation” for the purposes of CalHome rehabilitation grants. This bill passed the Senate Transportation & Housing Committee 11-0, and probably will be taken up on consent.
SB 398 (Correa) – This bill would streamline fire code enforcement in mobilehome parks. A local agency which takes on park code enforcement for HCD may enforce its own fire code, or a local fire agency may assume jurisdiction for certain limited fire code requirements in parks, such as weed abatement or fire hydrants. This bill would delete the requirement that a local agency must take on the full spectrum of park code enforcement in order to assume fire code jurisdiction. The bill would also require that park inspection and fire hydrant maintenance records be made available to the public on HCD’s website by July 1, 2012. This passed Senate Transportation & Housing 8-1.
AB 1108 (Fuentes): this appears to be the sleeper bill on park utilities; it has to do with master meter utilities. Master-meter utilities are mostly unregulated, although the Public Utilities Code requires that where gas or electric service is provided to a master-meter operator, the operator must charge the same rate to individual residents as the regulated utility or municipal utility district would charge if the utility or district were serving those residents directly. This bill provides that if the CA Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) finds that a master-meter customer has failed to maintain or repair its sub-meter facilities, the commission may order the master-meter customer to repair those facilities. This bill has been amended to provide that master-meter park operators shall transfer ownership and operation of the master-metered gas or electrical system to the serving regulated utility corporation, subject to procedures adopted by the CPUC, and permit the CPUC to allow the costs of upgrading, repair and operation of the those facilities to be spread out in the public utilities’ rate base. This bill is pending in the Assembly Utilities & Commerce Committee for hearing 04/27/09.
Ms. Spickler stated that although she cannot make every Mobilehome Commission meeting, she can be an ear and be the legwork person on the legislative end and if anyone is having difficulty with HCD in their park, she can act as a liaison. Commissioner Brocklebank asked how strongly Senator Simitian and Assemblymember Monning feel about these bills. Ms. Spickler stated that because the bills are still so new, she does not know how Assemblymember Monning will be voting because much can change before it is ready for a vote. However, she stated that Assemblymember Monning is an advocate for mobilehome residents.
The status of legislative bills can be found on the following websites: http://sinet2.sen.ca.gov/mobilehome/ and also at www.leginfo.ca.gov.
C. County Counsel Report
No report.
D. County Supervisor Report
Rita Winings, Aide to County Supervisor John Leopold, reported that he was out of town today so he could not make this meeting. She informed the Commission that the conversion of Alimur Mobilehome Park was heard by the Board of Supervisors and it was defeated by a vote of 3-1-1 (three opposed, one abstained, and one was not in attendance at the meeting).
E. Update on HUD Qualified Homes Legislation (Requested by Commissioner Hanley)
Commissioner Hanley was not in attendance today, however, she provided the Commission with a document explaining the situation regarding pre-HUD (1976) homes and their safety. On the Senate Select Committee website there is a move sponsored by a portion of WMA providing that pre-1976 homes cannot be sold in parks because they are firetraps and unlivable. Mr. Bowles stated that the main thrust of this appears to be to get the old homes out of the parks.
A. Invitation Letters to Assemblymember Monning and Senator Simitian to Discuss Pending Legislation at Next Month’s Mobilehome Commission Meeting
B. Letter of Appreciation to Mary Crowther
C. Board of Supervisor Appointment & Reappointment Letters to the Mobilehome Commission
D. Letter to County Board of Supervisors Requesting Their Opposition to AB 481
A resident of San Lorenzo Mobilehome Park provided a status report stating that some progress had been made regarding problems in that park.
V. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 10:50 A.M. The next meeting will be May 28, 2009.
Respectfully submitted,
Lee Ann Shenkman, Staff Secretary to the
Mobilehome Commission
Approved: