Sec. 4-258. - Protections from termination of tenancy in certain declared states of…

(a)

Upon the declaration or ratification of the declaration of a local state of emergency by resolution of the board of supervisors, in which such resolution the board of supervisors expressly invokes this Section 4-258. This Section, 4-258, shall take effect in all areas of the county as designated by the board of supervisors in such resolution, including the incorporated cities of the county, to the extent the designated areas include all or any portion of any incorporated cities of the county and shall remain in effect until thirty (30) days after such resolution is no longer in effect, or thirty (30) days after the board of supervisors terminates the invocation of this section by further resolution.

(b)

This section shall apply to all rental units in the county of Sonoma except for the following residential real properties or residential circumstances, to which this section shall not apply:

(1)

Transient and tourist hotel occupancy as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 1940;

(2)

Housing accommodations in a nonprofit hospital, religious facility, extended care facility, licensed residential care facility for the elderly, as defined in Section 1569.2 of the Health and Safety Code, or an adult residential facility, as defined in Chapter 6 of Division 6 of Title 22 of the Manual of Policies and Procedures published by the state department of social services;

(3)

Dormitories owned and operated by an institution of higher education or a kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, school.

(c)

While this Section 4-258 is in effect, no landlord shall take any action to terminate any tenancy unless able to prove the existence of one (1) of the following causes in accordance with this section, as stated in the termination notice that the court action is based on:

(1)

Recovery of possession is necessary due to violence, threats of violence, or when a tenant poses an imminent threat to the health or safety of a tenant in another unit. An imminent threat to the health and safety of another for purposes of this section cannot be the tenant's COVID-19 illness or exposure to COVID-19, whether actual or suspected;

(i)

Prior to serving a termination notice, if the intended recovery is not based on violence or threat of violence, the Landlord must serve on the tenant a warning notice giving a reasonable period of time to cure the violation. A reasonable period of time for purposes of this subsection shall be presumed to be ten (10) calendar days. The notice shall inform the tenant that a failure to cure may result in the initiation of eviction proceedings and include sufficient details of the violation to allow the tenant to reasonably comply and any information necessary to determine the date, time, place, witnesses present, and the circumstances concerning the reason for the notice.

(ii)

Except as permitted by Code of Civil Procedure section 1161.3, an act or acts against a Tenant that constitutes one (1) of the crimes listed in that section shall not give cause for termination of a tenancy to which this article applies.

(2)

Recovery of possession is being sought for the purposes of immediately removing the property from the rental market, pursuant to and in compliance with all applicable state law regulating such recovery of possession, including but not limited to the Ellis Act (Cal Gov. Code § 7060 et seq.).

(3)

Recovery of possession is required to comply with an order issued by a government agency or court requiring that the rental unit be permanently vacated.

(d)

For rental units located within the unincorporated areas of the county that are also located within the areas of the county designated by the board of supervisors to be subject to the emergency protections set forth in this section all applicable requirements of this article shall continue to apply to a landlord who terminates a tenancy while this Section, 4-258, is in effect.

(e)

During and after the expiration of this Section 4-258, a tenant covered under this section shall have an affirmative defense to an unlawful detainer action based upon nonpayment of rent due during the applicable time period of this article so long as the tenant can demonstrate that the tenant's failure to pay rent results from a substantial loss of income or substantial out-of-pocket expenses associated with the local emergency or any local, state, or federal government response to the local emergency.

(1)

To invoke the protection of this section, a tenant must also share documentation of substantial loss of income or substantial out-of-pocket expenses that resulted from the local emergency with the landlord following a written request, if such documentation is necessary for the purpose of supporting the landlord's claim for mortgage relief due to substantial loss of income or substantial out-of-pocket expenses resulting from the local emergency or any local, state, or federal government response to the pandemic.

(2)

Nothing in this subsection shall relieve a tenant of the obligation to pay rent, nor restrict a landlord's ability to recover rent due.

(f)

In any termination notice served under this section, a landlord must include the following information:

"NOTICE: THE COUNTY OF SONOMA HAS ADOPTED A TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON EVICTIONS DURING THE LOCAL EMERGENCY, WHICH IS NOW IN EFFECT. Except to protect the health and safety of other occupants of the property, or due to violence, threats of violence, or immediate withdrawal of property from the rental market, you may not be evicted during the local emergency declared by the county. This does not relieve you of the obligation to pay back rent. You may contact the county for additional information and referrals."

(g)

A landlord's failure to strictly comply with this section or any applicable requirements shall be an affirmative defense to an unlawful detainer action during or after the effective period of this section. A termination notice that fails to strictly comply with any requirement of this section shall be void.

(h)

All remedies listed in Section 4-260 shall additionally apply to this section in the manner specified in Section 4-260.

(Ord. No. 6527, § I, 8-26-2025; Ord. No. 6496, § 8, 9-17-2024)