Los Angeles Municipal Code Art. 3 Tenant Relocation Assistance Program

(Article Added by Ord. No. 175,156, Eff. 4/17/03.)

Section

163.00 Title. 163.01 Definitions. 163.02 Eligibility for Relocation Benefits. 163.03 Responsibilities of Enforcement Agency. 163.04 When Relocation Benefits Are Required to be Paid. 163.05 Amount of Relocation Benefits. 163.06 Enforcement. 163.07 Payment of Relocation Benefits by the City.

This article shall be known as the Tenant Relocation Assistance Program of the City of Los Angeles.

The following words and phrases, whenever used in this article, shall be construed as defined in this section unless the context within individual sections clearly indicates otherwise. Words and phrases not defined here shall be construed as defined in Sections 12.03, 57.202, 91.201 et seq., 91.8902, 151.02 and 161.201.

A. Appeals Board. The Board of Fire Commissioners, the Board of Building and Safety Commissioners or the Rent Adjustment Commission, depending on which Enforcement Agency issued the order to vacate.

B. Board of Fire Commissioner. The Appeals Board for the Fire Department.

C. Building and Safety Commission. The Board of Building and Safety Commissioners. The Appeals Board for the Department of Building and Safety.

D. Enforcement Agency. The Departments of Building and Safety, Fire, or Housing of the City of Los Angeles.

E. General Manager. The Superintendent of Building and the General Manager of the Department of Building and Safety or the Superintendent’s or General Manager’s designee, the General Manager of the Los Angeles Housing Department or the General Manager’s designee, and/or the Chief of the Fire Department or the Chief’s designee. (Amended by Ord. No. 187,122, Eff. 8/8/21.)

F. Landlord. An owner, lessor, or sublessor, (including any person firm, corporation, partnership, or other entity) of residential rental property, or their designated agent, representative or successor. (Amended

by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

G. Order To Vacate. Any order or notice to vacate issued by an Enforcement Agency or by a court of law, requiring the vacation of a residential unit as a result of a violation so extensive and of such a nature that the immediate health and safety of the residents is endangered. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

H. Qualified Tenant. Any tenant who has attained age 62; is handicapped as defined in California Health and Safety Code Section 50072 or is disabled as defined in United States Code Title 42, Sec. 423; or is a person residing with and on whom is legally dependent (as determined for federal income tax persons) one or more minor children.

I. The Rent Adjustment Commission (RAC). The Rent Adjustment Commission, or its successor. The Appeals Board for the Los Angeles Housing Department. (Amended by Ord. No. 187,122, Eff. 8/8/21.)

A. Any tenant who is displaced or subject to displacement from a residential rental unit as result of an order to vacate or any order requiring the vacation of the residential unit by the Enforcement Agency due to a violation so extensive and of such a nature that the immediate health and safety of the residents is endangered, shall be entitled to relocation benefits payable by the landlord in the amounts prescribed in Section 163.05. The Enforcement Agency shall determine the eligibility of tenants for benefits paid pursuant to this article. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

B. No relocation benefits pursuant to this article shall be payable to any tenant who has caused or substantially contributed to the condition giving rise to the order to vacate, as determined by the Enforcement Agency, nor shall any relocation benefits be payable to a tenant if any guest or invitee of the tenant has caused or substantially contributed to the condition giving rise to the order to vacate, as determined by the Enforcement Agency. The Enforcement Agency shall make the determination whether a tenant, tenant’s guest, or invitee caused or substantially contributed to the condition giving rise to the order to vacate at the same time that the order to vacate the tenants is made.

C. A landlord shall not be liable for relocation benefits if the Enforcement Agency determines that the unit or structure became unsafe or hazardous as the result of a fire, flood, earthquake, or other event beyond the control of the landlord and the landlord did not cause or contribute to the condition.

D. In the situations described in Subsections B. and C. of this section, the tenants of units within a multi-unit structure who did not cause or substantially contribute to the uninhabitable condition shall be eligible for relocation benefits from the City if the City elects at its discretion to pay relocation benefits, based on the recommendation from the Enforcement Agency. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

A. Unless the Enforcement Agency determines that the tenants are not eligible for relocation benefits pursuant to the provisions of Section 163.02 above, the Enforcement Agency shall issue an order requiring the landlord to pay relocation benefits in the amounts specified in Section 163.05. The order shall direct that relocation assistance be paid in the time set forth in Section 163.04, and the Enforcement Agency shall provide notice of the order to the landlord and the tenants in the manner set forth in that section. If possible, the order to pay relocation benefits shall be made simultaneously with the issuance of the order to vacate. When ordering the landlord to pay the relocation benefits, the Enforcement Agency shall adhere to the procedures set forth in Section 163.04.

B. Any order to vacate issued by an Enforcement Agency shall be accompanied by a summary of the provisions of California Health and Safety Code Section 17975 et seq. Failure to provide a summary shall not relieve any person of the obligations imposed by this article. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

C. Any order to pay relocation assistance shall advise the landlord of the appeals process by which the landlord may challenge the determination of the Enforcement Agency.

D. Where the landlord fails, neglects, or refuses to comply with an order to pay relocation benefits, the City, acting through the General Manager of the Enforcement Agency, may advance relocation benefits to displaced tenants and recover the advanced amount, penalties and costs from the landlord. If the total amount of relocation benefits advanced pursuant to Section 163.05 exceeds $100,000 per property, the General Manager must obtain the concurrence of the Mayor and City Council before advancing benefits to displaced tenants. (Sentence Amended by Ord. No. 182,768, Eff. 12/13/13.) The landlord shall be liable to the City of Los Angeles for reimbursement of the relocation benefits plus a penalty in the amount of one-half of the benefits paid, not to exceed $10,000, and the costs of the Enforcement Agency as set forth in California Health and Safety Code Section 17975 et seq. (Sentence Amended by Ord. No. 181,744, Eff. 7/15/11.) The City may collect the reimbursement, penalties and costs in the manner set forth in that section, including the imposition of a lien on the property.

E. The General Manager of the Enforcement Agency is empowered and designated to hear and adjudicate any appeal brought by a landlord from an order requiring payment of relocation benefits. The Enforcement Agency’s Appeals Board is empowered and designated to hear and adjudicate any appeal from the General Manager’s decision. The General Manager and the Enforcement Agency’s Appeals Board shall adhere to the requirements of California Health and Safety Code Section 17975 et seq. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

A. The relocation benefits required by this article shall be paid by the landlord to the tenant within ten days after the date that the order to vacate is first mailed to the landlord and posted on the premises, or at least 20 days prior to the vacation date set forth in the order to vacate, whichever occurs later. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

B. If there are fewer than ten days between the first posting and mailing of the order to vacate and the vacation date, the relocation benefits shall be paid by the landlord to the tenant within 24 hours after the notice is posted and mailed. The Enforcement Agency shall attempt to provide either telephonic or written notice to the landlord to notify the landlord that the benefits are payable immediately. Failure to provide notice as specified in this section shall not relieve the landlord of any obligations imposed by this article. (Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

C. If a tenant is entitled to relocation benefits pursuant to Section 163.02 above, the Enforcement Agency shall provide either telephonic or written notice to the tenant of the tenant’s entitlement to the benefits. Written notice may be satisfied by posting a written notice on the premises stating that tenants may be entitled to relocation benefits.

(Amended by Ord. No. 188,795, Eff. 2/2/26.)

The relocation payment shall be made available by the landlord to the tenant in each residential unit and shall be in the amounts set forth in Section 151.09 G. of this Code, or in an amount equal to the sum of two months of the established fair market rent for the Los Angeles/Long Beach area as determined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to Section 1437(f) of Title 42 of the United States Code, whichever amount is greater.

Beginning on July 1, 2026, the relocation amount for qualified and all other tenants shall be adjusted on an annual basis pursuant to the formula set forth in Section 151.06 D. except that the increase shall be based on 100 percent of the percentage change as determined by the Department. The adjusted amount shall be rounded to the nearest fifty-dollar increment. If the relocation payment is based on the established fair market rent for the Los Angeles/Long Beach area as determined by the Department of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to Section 1437(f) of Title 42 of the United States Code, then the relocation payment shall also include an amount, as determined by the Enforcement Agency, sufficient for utility service deposits. The relocation benefits shall be paid by the landlord in addition to the return, as required by law, of any security deposits held by the landlord. The relocation benefits shall be made on a per residential unit basis.

A. If the landlord fails, neglects or refuses to make timely payments to a tenant pursuant to an order to pay relocation benefits, except in the situations described in Sections 163.02 B. or 163.02 C., and if the tenant does not receive relocation payments from the City, the landlord shall be liable to the tenant in a civil action for an amount equal to one and one-half times the relocation benefits payable pursuant to Section 163.05. The tenant shall also be entitled to recover reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs as determined by a court.

B. Subsection A. of this section shall not apply when relocation benefits are payable fewer than ten days after the date the order to vacate is first mailed and posted on the premises, if the landlord makes the payment no later than ten days after the order is first mailed and posted.

(Amended by Ord. No. 184,336, Eff. 7/19/16.)

A. If the landlord fails, neglects or refuses to pay relocation payments to a tenant displaced or subject to displacement pursuant to an order to vacate except in the situations described in Section 163.02 B. or 163.02 C. above, the City may advance relocation payments to the tenants in the amount set forth in Section 163.05 above.

B. If the landlord fails to comply with an order to pay relocation assistance, the landlord shall be liable to the City for any relocation payments advanced, other than any payments made pursuant to Section 163.02 D., in the amount of the payments plus a penalty in the amount set forth in California Health and Safety Code Section 17975.5(a). The Enforcement Agency may place a lien against the property as set forth in California Health and Safety Code Section 17975.5(b).

C. Prior to instituting any action to collect from the landlord or to impose a lien on the property, the Enforcement Agency shall send an accounting to the landlord as set forth in California Health and Safety Code Section 17975. The landlord may contest the accounting within 20 days after receipt by filing a written request for a General Manager’s hearing. However, if there are fewer than ten days between the first posting and mailing of the order to vacate and the vacation date, and if the City advances relocation benefits to any tenants prior to the expiration of the ten-day period, the landlord shall have 30 days to file a written request contesting the charge after the itemized accounting is mailed.

D. If the request is filed within the time set forth in Subsection 163.07 C. above, the General Manager shall hold a hearing following the procedures for the Enforcement Agency. Any person aggrieved by the decision of the General Manager may appeal to the Appeals Board following the procedures for that Enforcement Agency. If the landlord fails to obtain a more favorable decision than that set forth in the itemized accounting, the landlord shall be liable to the City for the costs of the administrative hearing and appeal, not to exceed $5,000. If the accounting is not appealed as set forth in this paragraph, it is final and is subject to California Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.5. The failure to receive the itemized accounting shall not relieve the landlord of any obligation to the City.

E. Nothing this in article shall be construed to require the Enforcement Agency to pay any relocation benefits to any tenant, or assume any obligation, requirements or duty of the landlord pursuant to this article.

(Repealed by Ord. No. 175,980, Eff. 7/3/04.)