SENATE BILL REPORT

SB 5864

BYSenators Smitherman, Warnke, Bender, Garrett and Rasmussen

Providing for inclusion of mobile home owners in relocation assistance procedures.

Senate Committee on Commerce & Labor

Senate Hearing Date(s):February 17, 1987; February 20, 1987

Majority Report:  Do pass.

      Signed by Senators Warnke, Chairman; Smitherman, Vice Chairman; Sellar, Tanner, Vognild, Williams.

Senate Staff:Dave Cheal (786-7576)

                  February 23, 1987

AS REPORTED BY COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE & LABOR, FEBRUARY 20, 1987

BACKGROUND:

Mobile home parks can be closed as a result of condemnation without any compensation to tenants.  However, relocation presents serious problems to tenants, both financial and otherwise.  Costs for moving a mobile home range from $1,500 to several thousand.  Tenants often have significant landscaping or other improvements that are impossible to move.

Relocation also means finding a park space or other suitable site in a market with a very low vacancy rate.  Proximity to shopping and health care facilities is often critical and difficult to find.

Currently, the state is required to provide certain types of relocation assistance for displacements resulting from condemnation.  It is unclear whether any of these would apply to mobile home park tenants.  Local governments are required to provide the same assistance only if the project is financed, in part, by federal aid.  Provision of assistance in connection with other projects is optional.

SUMMARY:

The chapter dealing with the provision of relocation assistance is amended to make it mandatory that both the state and units of local government provide relocation assistance to mobile home park residents.  It applies to tenants in mobile home parks, residents in mobile home cooperatives, or mobile home park subdivisions as those terms are defined in the Mobile Home Landlord Tenant Act.

Three types of assistance are provided:  (1) The lesser cost of moving a mobile home to another suitable site, or of acquiring a suitable replacement minus the amount realized from a sale of the unit on the affected site; (2) to anyone not eligible for the first kind of assistance, the amount necessary to rent a suitable replacement site for a period not to exceed four years up to a maximum of $4,000; and (3) advisory assistance to help the displaced person find another suitable location.

Fiscal Note:      requested

Senate Committee - Testified: John H. Jensen