Washington State

House of Representatives

Office of Program Research

BILL

ANALYSIS

Housing, Community Development & Veterans Committee

HB 1033

This analysis was prepared by non-partisan legislative staff for the use of legislative members in their deliberations. This analysis is not a part of the legislation nor does it constitute a statement of legislative intent.

Brief Summary of Bill

Allows qualifying manufactured/mobile home park tenants to use Relocation Assistance Program (Program) funds to secure housing that is not a manufactured/mobile home.
Allows manufactured/mobile home park tenants seeking relocation assistance from the Program to receive other funding for relocation purposes, without reducing their eligibility for relocation assistance funds.
Requires that a manufactured/mobile home park tenant's combined relocation assistance, from the Program and other sources, not exceed the tenant's actual relocation expenses.

Background:

Office of Mobile and Manufactured Home Relocation Assistance.

The Office of Mobile and Manufactured Home Relocation Assistance (Office), in the Department of Commerce (Department), provides general assistance to mobile and manufactured home resident organizations, tenant organizations, and mobile and manufactured home community owners. Among its duties, the Office provides technical assistance to tenants who are participating in the conversion of a mobile home park to resident ownership, and provides financial assistance to homeowners under the Mobile Home Relocation Assistance Program (Relocation Assistance Program) when mobile home parks close.

Mobile Home Relocation Assistance Program.

The Relocation Assistance Program, administered by the Office, provides monetary assistance on a first-come, first-served basis to low-income persons owning mobile homes located in mobile home parks that are scheduled for closure or conversion to another use. Tenants residing in parks that are closed because of park-owner fraud or health and safety concerns are given priority to available funds. Payments are made by the Office upon verification of eligibility and subject to the availability of funds. To be eligible for relocation assistance:

a tenant's household income must be no greater than 80 percent of the median family income for the county where the mobile or manufactured home is located; and
the homeowner must maintain ownership and either relocate the home or dispose of it if it cannot be relocated.

Eligible mobile home owners may receive reimbursement of relocation expenses up to $12,000 for a double-wide home and $7,500 for a single-wide home.

If a mobile home owner receives assistance for relocation from a source other than the Relocation Assistance Program, the assistance provided under the Relocation Assistance Program must be reduced to ensure that no person receives from all sources combined more than:

the actual costs of relocation; or
$7,000 for a double-wide mobile home or $3000 for a single-wide mobile home.

The assistance received from the Relocation Assistance Program funds will be the difference between maximum amount to which a person is entitled under the Relocation Assistance Program and the amount received from the outside source. If the amount from the outside source exceeds the maximum amount of assistance to which a person is entitled under the Relocation Assistance Program, then that person will not receive any assistance from the Relocation Assistance Program funds.

Summary of Bill:

The Relocation Assistance Program is expanded to allow tenants to use Relocation Assistance Program funds to secure housing that is not a manufactured/mobile home if their manufactured/mobile home has been demolished and disposed of.

The following Relocation Assistance Program requirements related to outside assistance are eliminated:

reductions in relocation assistance from the Relocation Assistance Program upon receipt of outside funding; and
disqualification from the Relocation Assistance Program if the amount of the outside funds received exceeds the maximum amount for which a person is eligible under the Relocation Assistance Program.

A tenant's combined relocation assistance funds, from outside sources and the Relocation Assistance Program, must not exceed the tenant's actual relocation expenses.

"Tenant" means a person that owns a manufactured/mobile home located on a rented lot in a manufactured/mobile home park.

Relocation Assistance Program application criteria are modified:

separate application procedures for different types of tenants are eliminated;
a requirement to provide a copy of the contract for relocating the home is eliminated; and
a requirement to provide proof of ownership of the home at the time of the notice of park closure is added.