Los Gatos Municipal Code Div. 2 Mobile Home Hearing Process

There is established the mobile home rental dispute hearing process.

(Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

(a) The mobile home park owner shall notify all affected tenants of any rent increase scheduled to take place during the following calendar year. All notices shall be given at least ninety (90) days prior to the effective date of the rent raise on or about the same calendar day each year. The purpose of this requirement is to avoid the possibility of multiple disputes over rent increases for the same park within a given year. (This requirement does not apply to increases pursuant to leases identified in section 14.85.175.)

(b) Any notice of space rent increase shall include notice of the tenant's right to participate in the rent review process and shall provide the business address and telephone number of the Town's agent.

(c) The park owner shall, upon written request, provide each affected tenant with a list of all tenants with their respective space numbers who received a notice of rent increase.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § IV, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

The space rent of any mobile home space may not be increased more than once in any twelve-month period, except as provided in section 14.85.025.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

Except as provided in this article, any space rent increase after December 6, 1992, that exceeds the CPI rent increase as defined in section 14.85.020 (e) of this article shall be deemed a supplemental rent increase and shall be subject to review under the hearing process.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

Any owner who seeks a supplemental rent increase shall notify all affected tenants in writing of the amount of the supplemental increase over the allowable rent increase, reasons for the requested supplemental increase, results of the Net Operating Income calculations, and/or explanation of capital improvement costs related to the supplemental rent increase request. It shall also set forth the time requirements for filing the tenant petition, the number of required signatures, and the mailing address and contact telephone number for the Town's agent. This notice shall be submitted to the Town's agent and serve as the owner's petition. Blank petitions for tenants opposing the supplemental rent increase shall also be provided with this petition and included in the notice sent to all tenants.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

(a) Submission of tenant's petition disputing supplemental rent increase. Any tenant who wishes to limit any rent increase may file a tenant's petition with the Town's agent within thirty (30) days of receiving a notice of supplemental rent increase. To be a validated petition it must be supported by at least twenty (20) percent of the affected tenants as determined by the petitions delivered to the Town's agent. The sole basis for such a petition shall be to request a reduction in a supplemental rent increase petition filed by owner.

(b) Submission of tenant's petition for a reduction in service. A tenant who wishes to reduce any current rents on the basis of a reduction in service may file a petition with the Town's agent. Upon receipt, the Town's agent shall send a ballot to each affected tenant to determine tenant's support for the petition. To be a validated petition it must be supported by at least twenty (20) percent of the affected tenants as determined by the ballots returned to the Town's agent within twenty (20) days of receipt of the ballot by tenant. The sole basis for such a petition shall be to compensate for a reduction in service as provided in division 4 of this article. Before filing a tenant's petition, written notice of the alleged service reduction and a reasonable opportunity to restore service must be given to the mobile home park owner.

(c) If a group of tenants seeks review, the affected tenants shall designate in writing to the Town's agent an individual to serve as the tenant representative for the purposes of receipt of all notice, correspondence, decisions and findings of fact required in this article, within ten (10) days of notice to affected tenants by the Town's agent of a validated tenant petition. The tenants, if they desire, may also designate more than one representative to serve as co-representatives or backup representatives. Service of notice upon the designated tenant representative will constitute adequate and sufficient notice to tenants who submitted petitions or ballots supporting a petition. Failure to designate a tenant representative within ten (10) days of notice by Town's agent that sufficient petitions have been received to proceed with this process will render the petition incomplete and the petitions will be dismissed. The tenant representative or representatives shall be responsible for making reasonable efforts to communicate with the affected tenants to inform them regarding the status of the case and substantive proposals from the park ownership. Any ratification of a settlement proposal or any other decision determining the outcome of this process shall remain the prerogative of the affected tenants. The designated tenant representative or representatives shall, in consultation with Town's agent, conduct ratification votes or other similar processes to permit the affected tenants to make these decisions.

(d) A tenant's petition may include a request for audit and Net Operating Income (NOI) analysis for the preceding three (3) years; however, no such tenant-requested audit and analysis may be required more frequently than once in every three (3) year period. The auditor shall be selected by Town or its agent. The cost of such audit and analysis shall be paid by the Town from the regulatory fees collected. The full audit shall be confidential and presented to the arbitrator only. A summary, including at least income and expenses by account and NOI analyses, shall be prepared by the auditor or designate and presented to the mobile home park owner and tenant representative. Disclosure of any information not included in the summary shall be disclosed only as deemed necessary in the exclusive discretion of the arbitrator.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § V, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02; Ord. No. 2320, § III, 9-7-21)

(a) The form of the owner's and tenant's petition shall be prescribed by the Town's agent and must be accompanied by supporting material as prescribed by the Town's agent. An owner's petition shall contain the printed name and address (i.e. space number) of each tenant whose rent is being increased. Appended to the petition shall be a copy of the notice given by the park owner which indicated the date it was served. Appended to the tenant's petition alleging service reduction shall be a copy of the tenant's notice to the mobile home park owner of that service reduction. The petition shall be made under penalty of perjury and supporting documents shall be certified or verified as requested by the Town's agent.

(b) All petitions received by Town's agent concerning similar issues at the same mobile home park will be merged at the Town agent's discretion.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § VI, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

An owner's petition must be filed at least ninety (90) days before the first effective date of the increase stated in the notice/petition to tenant. A tenant's petition disputing a proposed supplemental rent increase must be filed within thirty (30) days after receiving a notice of supplemental rent increase. A tenant's petition alleging a service reduction must be filed within ninety (90) calendar days after expiration of the reasonable time given to the mobile home park owner to restore services.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § VII, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

If an owner's petition is filed, the supplemental increase shall not take effect until the date specified on the petition or until a negotiated/arbitrated supplemental increase is agreed to during the hearing process, whichever is later.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

(a) Parties. Parties to an owner's petition and a tenant's petition disputing a supplemental increase include the owner and all tenants affected by the proposed rental increase. Parties to a tenant's petition for service reduction include the owner and signatories of the petition or ballots.

(b) Timing of meetings.

(1) Tenant's petition disputing supplemental increase. Upon receipt of sufficient valid petitions by tenants disputing a supplemental rent increase, the time of the hearing process shall be as follows:

a. Within ten (10) days of selection of a tenant representative(s) as provided for in section 14.85.125 (c) of this article, the owner and tenant representative(s) shall hold a joint meeting to determine whether the parties can resolve the rent increase issue prior to mediation or arbitration. The parties may request supportive conciliation input from the Town's agent. The mobile home park owner shall set a time and place for a meeting to be held on the mobile home park premises, giving the tenant spokesperson(s) at least seven (7) days' written notice of the time and place.

b. If the parties have not resolved the dispute within ten (10) days after the joint meeting specified above in subparagraph a., the Town's agent shall set the case for a mediation session. The mediation session shall be held within twenty (20) days of the notice from the Town's agent, unless all parties agree in writing to extend the deadline. The specific procedures for the mediation process shall be those set forth in section 14.85.415 of this article.

c. If the mediation session fails to resolve this dispute, the mediator shall issue a declaration of impasse. Any party seeking arbitration of the dispute, must file a written request for arbitration with the Town's agent within ten (10) days of the notice of impasse. The actual arbitration hearing, will be held within thirty (30) days of the written request for arbitration, or as soon thereafter as is administratively possible to do so.

(2) Tenant's petition alleging service reduction. Within thirty (30) days from the date a validated tenant's petition is received by the Town's agent per section 14.85.125(b), the same procedures set forth above in subparagraph (1) shall apply.

a. Notice for arbitration hearing. The Town's agent shall mail written notice to all parties at least fourteen (14) calendar days before the hearing.

b. Extensions. Extensions of time for the hearing process may be mutually agreed upon by both parties with the concurrence of the arbitrator.

c. All evidence, briefs, or other submittals prepared by the parties for presentation at the arbitration hearing shall be served on the arbitrator and the opposing party or parties at least five (5) days prior to the date set for the arbitration hearing. The arbitrator shall decide any pre-hearing motions to exclude evidence or to continue a scheduled hearing, to issue a subpoena, or to address any other pre-hearing issues. Any such motions or other requests shall be served on the opposing party or parties at the same time they are submitted to the arbitrator. Upon a request from a party or parties, the arbitrator shall have the power to issue a subpoena for testimony at the hearing. Upon a request from a party or parties with a showing of good cause, the arbitrator shall have the power to issue a subpoena for the production of documents either at the hearing or prior to the hearing.

d. The arbitrator shall have the power to continue a hearing date upon a showing of good cause.

e. At the arbitration hearing, the tenant representative or representatives will present the case on behalf of the affected tenants either directly or through a designated representative or legal counsel. The owner will present the case on behalf of the owner either directly or through a designated representative or legal counsel. The arbitrator shall have the authority to determine who else may attend the hearing, based on the principles that the affected tenants should be permitted to attend, and that members of the public should have the opportunity to attend, but that the arbitrator retains the authority to maintain sufficient order and decorum to hear the case in a conducive environment.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § VIII, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

The Town shall pay the arbitrator's fee from the regulatory fees.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

The hearing shall be conducted by an arbitrator, appointed as a result of the following procedure. The parties will be provided with a list of potential arbitrators with a minimum of three (3) choices. Each party will be given an opportunity to strike at least one (1) name from the list within seven (7) days after receiving the list. The Town's agent shall appoint the arbitrator from the remaining name or names. Subject to the requirements of section 14.85.145, the arbitrator shall determine the admissibility of all evidence based on whether the evidence is relevant to any issue necessary to determine the petition or petitions at issue.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

(a) Owner's petition. Based upon the evidence presented at the hearing, the arbitrator shall determine the extent to which the proposed supplemental rent increase is reasonable, in accordance with the factors set forth in section 14.85.200. The burden of proof regarding such reasonableness shall be on the owner unless otherwise indicated.

(b) Tenant's petition. Based upon the evidence presented at the hearing, the arbitrator shall determine if a service reduction has occurred and the monetary value thereof. The burden of proof to establish a service reduction and its monetary value shall be on the person or persons alleging reduction.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § IX, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

Within twenty (20) days following the conclusion of the hearing, the arbitrator shall deliver to the Town's agent a written statement of determination and findings of fact upon which such determination is based. Such determination shall include validation, refutation, or correction of any NOI or other calculations which represent a fundamental element of the supplemental rent increase request or service reduction allegation. The Town's agent shall cause copies of the determination and the findings to be mailed by regular first class mail to all parties.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § X, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

Any rent increases collected by a mobile home park owner pursuant to a CPI or supplemental increase, or which are subject to a service reduction, which are determined to be unjustified by a final settlement agreement or arbitrator's award, shall, within ninety (90) days of said settlement or determination be refunded to the affected tenants or if not refunded during said period, credited against all rent otherwise immediately due thereafter until fully offset, unless specified otherwise in the settlement or arbitration award. Any rental increase which has not been collected during the pendency of a rental increase or service reduction case and which is determined by a final settlement or arbitrator's award to be justified shall be due and payable from all affected tenants within ninety (90) days after said settlement or award, unless specified otherwise in the settlement or arbitration award.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § XI, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

The determination made under the provisions of this article shall be effective with respect to all affected mobile home park spaces, unless the tenant of such space has a written lease which meets the criteria of Civil Code Section 798.17, with the owner which otherwise sets forth the rights and obligations of the parties with respect to rent.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § XII, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)

The determination of the arbitrator shall be final. Any party disputing the determination and findings may seek review pursuant to Sections 1094.5 and 1094.6 of the California Code of Civil Procedure. Section 1094.6 expressly applies to proceedings under this article.

(Ord. No. 1917, § I, 10-19-92; Ord. No. 1973, § XIII, 5-2-94; Ord. No. 2103, § I, 9-15-02)