Sacramento Report
by Debra Carlton
Below is a summary of some of the California Apartment Association’s (CAA) priority landlord-tenant and employer legislation that Governor Davis signed prior to leaving office. Next month we will bring you a complete summary of what the governor vetoed or signed into legislation during his last week in office. In the meantime, you can go to www.caanet.org for updates and additional information on these and other bills. With a few exceptions, as indicated below, each of these new laws will take effect January 1, 2004.
No Move-Out Unit Inspection Required When Owner Serves Tenant a Three-Day Notice: This CAA-sponsoredlawamendsthestate-required, landlord-tenant move-out, walk-through process that is currently required by state law. It specifically provides that the owner is not required to provide the tenant with a move-out, walk-through of the unit (as required by existing law) when the owner serves the tenant with a Three-Day Termination Notice for Failure to Pay Rent or for a Lease Violation.
Rental Property Owners Required to Provide Tenants Receipts When Spending Tenants Security Deposit: Rental property owners are required to provide tenants with receipts, invoices or a vendor price list for any labor or materials that the owner purchases and deducts from the tenant’s security deposit.
No Gender Identity Discrimination: This law clarifies that discrimination in housing and employment based upon an individual’s gender identity is prohibited. It allows employers to require employees to comply with reasonable workplace appearance, grooming, and dress standards, provided that employees are allowed to appear or dress consistently with their gender identity.
Business Owners Who Negotiate in Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese or Korean Must Provide Contracts in These Languages: A business or trade person who negotiates a contract in a language mentioned above must provide a copy of any contract in that language. This amends the existing requirements that mandate a contract in Spanish when businesses negotiate in that language.
Universal Health Care Program: Beginning in 2006, all employers with 200 or more employees will be required to pay 80 percent of the medical coverage for workers and their dependents, leaving employees to pay the balance of 20 percent. Low-income workers will only be required to pay 5 percent of the coverage costs.
In 2007, this mandate will be expanded to include employers with 50 to 199 employees, as it pertains to medical coverage for workers only. Employers having 20 to 49 employees will be subjected to this mandate in 2007 only if the legislature and governor enact a tax credit applicable to these employers in an amount not less than 20 percent of the net employer cost of the fee imposed if the medical coverage is not provided. Employers with less than 20 employees are exempt from the provisions.
This law requires impacted companies to pay yet-to-be-determined fees into a state insurance pool if the mandated medical coverage is not provided. Details of the amount of the fee and administration of the pool are left to the designated administrator, the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board.Thenew governor (Governor Schwarzenegger) will appoint this board. Stay tuned for more updates.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the SFAA or the San Francisco Apartment Magazine.DebraCarlton is the Vice President of Policy and Research for the California Apartment Association and is CAA’s chief lobbyist. Copyright © 2003.