And what a week it’s been. Committees are up and running, and WMA has had several significant successes. 

STATEWIDE RENT CONTROL BILL HELD IN COMMITTEE

Assembly Bill 1035 (Muratsuchi, D-Torrance), the most existential threat to our industry in recent history that would require statewide rent control for mobilehome parks has been held in committee and will not be heard this year.

Due to efforts made by the WMA Legislative Team and the work of WMA members who contacted legislators serving on the Assembly Housing Committee through our Voter Voice campaign, Assembly Bill 1035 is done for the year.

This successful effort to stop statewide rent control this year for manufactured housing communities cannot be understated. The efforts of WMA’s Legislative Team, Legal Team, and dozens of WMA members were instrumental in stopping this legislation. Many other organizations and individuals also stepped up and helped defeat Assembly Bill 1035. 

While Assembly Bill 1035 is still technically eligible to be heard next year, our combined efforts were successful in convincing a majority of the committee that the legislation should not move forward. This effort shows that working together as an industry can yield powerful results.

To view the language of Assembly Bill 1035, please click on the following link:

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB1035

MRLPP EXTENSION BILL PLACED ON ASSEMBLY APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE SUSPENSE FILE

Assembly Bill 318 (Addis, D-Morro Bay), which would have made the Mobilehome Residency Law Protection Program (MRLPP) permanent, was amended in the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee to extend the sunset date for another three years. 

WMA has argued that due to the Joint Legislative Audit Committee (JLAC) approving the State Auditor to conduct an audit of the program administered by the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD), Assembly Bill 318 should not proceed with a three-year extension, but a one-year extension of the MRLPP may be more appropriate to allow JLAC to complete its audit and report its findings to the Legislature.

Assembly Bill 318 has been placed on the Appropriations Committee Suspense File due to significant fiscal costs, and the committee will decide if it should move to the Assembly Floor in early May. WMA is currently working with the Appropriations staff to address concerns about the program.

To view the language of Assembly Bill 318, please click on the following link:

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB318

FIRST RIGHT OF REFUSAL BILL HELD IN COMMITTEE

WMA has helped lead a coalition effort to defeat Assembly Bill 919 (Kalra, D-San Jose) that would offer residents a first right of refusal upon being notified of an owner’s intent to sell the park to a qualified purchaser. This bill would, if it became law, impede the ability of a manufactured housing community owner to sell a park and allow residents to delay the sale for several months.

Because of the efforts of WMA’s Legislative Team and the work of other property owner groups, Assembly Bill 919 will not move forward this year. It will be held in the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

To view the language of Assembly Bill 919, please click on the following link:

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB919

MANY OTHER SIGNIFICANT BILLS AWAIT ACTION

Several other bills that adversely affect the ability of manufactured housing communities to operate still await action, and WMA is working to defeat the following measures:

Senate Bill 466 (Wahab, D-Hayward)

This legislation would amend the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act that generally limits rent control on properties built after 1995.  While the current legislation does not explicitly involve manufactured housing communities, WMA is concerned about the precedent that would be established. This bill was substantially amended on Tuesday, but WMA is still opposed.

To view the language of Senate Bill 466, please click on the following link:

eginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB466

Senate Bill 567 (Durazo, D-Los Angeles)

Senate Bill 567 was recently amended to include park-owned rental properties in a statewide rent control regime capping rent increases for homes at five percent.

WMA is fully engaged in efforts to defeat this legislation along with other property owner groups, including the California Apartment Association, the California Association of Realtors, and the California Mortgage Bankers Association. The bill will be heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee next week, so please keep an eye out for a Voter Voice message urging a “NO” vote from Senators on the Judiciary Committee.  To read the language of Senate Bill 567, please click on the following link:

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB567

Assembly Bill 604 (Lee, D-San Jose)

Under Assembly Bill 1061, also authored by Assemblymember Lee, that was passed and signed into law in 2021, fees for providing water to residents were capped in areas not under the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC).  After realizing that Assembly Bill 1061 did not include his own city, which receives water from a CPUC regulated entity, Assemblymember Lee introduced Assembly Bill 604 to extend the provisions of Assembly Bill 1061 to the entire state.

WMA has actively opposed Assembly Bill 604, but it was passed out of the Assembly Appropriations Committee yesterday and will be eligible to be considered by the full Assembly in the coming weeks. Please watch for a Voter Voice message alert that will allow you to communicate your position on the bill to your Assemblymember.  To read the language of Assembly Bill 604, please click on the following link:

leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240AB604

WMA Legislative Tracking

These Capitol Updates provide information on the most pressing bills currently under consideration by the Legislature, but WMA is tracking dozens of other legislative measures.  To keep apprised of the status of bills WMA is monitoring, please click on the following link:

www.wma.org/bills-interest

HCD Comment Period is Open on Inspection Program Proposed Regulations

The Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) announced it would adopt regulations governing the Mobilehome Parks and Special Occupancy Parks which the Mobilehome Parks Act and Special Occupancy Parks Act established. As the notice indicates:

“The purpose of the proposed regulations is to establish consistent fees for services provided under existing law, and to realign fees based on actual duties and activities relating to health and safety inspections, complaint investigations, state mandates, administration, and supervision of the home offices located to statewide, and to facilitate efficiency of state operations.”

There are three separate links outlining the scope of the proposed rulemaking notice provided by HCD, and they can be found below:

Fee Realignment: Notice of Proposed Action (ca.gov)

Fee-Realignment-Express-Terms.docx (live.com)

Fee Realignment: Initial Statement of Reasons (ca.gov)

WMA will be filing comments on this proposed action, and please email me at chris@wma.org with any questions. 

It is an honor to serve WMA, and please feel free to call me on my direct line at 916.288.4026 with any questions.