BILL REQ. #: S-3508.4
State of Washington | 62nd Legislature | 2012 Regular Session |
Read first time 01/18/12. Referred to Committee on Financial Institutions, Housing & Insurance.
AN ACT Relating to the obligations of landlords and tenants with respect to carbon monoxide alarms and the disclosure of certain health-related information; and amending RCW 59.18.060 and 59.18.130.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1 RCW 59.18.060 and 2011 c 132 s 2 are each amended to read
as follows:
The landlord will at all times during the tenancy keep the premises
fit for human habitation, and shall in particular:
(1) Maintain the premises to substantially comply with any
applicable code, statute, ordinance, or regulation governing their
maintenance or operation, which the legislative body enacting the
applicable code, statute, ordinance or regulation could enforce as to
the premises rented if such condition endangers or impairs the health
or safety of the tenant;
(2) Maintain the structural components including, but not limited
to, the roofs, floors, walls, chimneys, fireplaces, foundations, and
all other structural components, in reasonably good repair so as to be
usable;
(3) Keep any shared or common areas reasonably clean, sanitary, and
safe from defects increasing the hazards of fire or accident;
(4) Provide a reasonable program for the control of infestation by
insects, rodents, and other pests at the initiation of the tenancy and,
except in the case of a single-family residence, control infestation
during tenancy except where such infestation is caused by the tenant;
(5) Except where the condition is attributable to normal wear and
tear, make repairs and arrangements necessary to put and keep the
premises in as good condition as it by law or rental agreement should
have been, at the commencement of the tenancy;
(6) Provide reasonably adequate locks and furnish keys to the
tenant;
(7) Maintain all electrical, plumbing, heating, and other
facilities and appliances supplied by him or her in reasonably good
working order;
(8) Maintain the dwelling unit in reasonably weathertight
condition;
(9) Except in the case of a single-family residence, provide and
maintain appropriate receptacles in common areas for the removal of
ashes, rubbish, and garbage, incidental to the occupancy and arrange
for the reasonable and regular removal of such waste;
(10) Provide facilities adequate to supply heat and water and hot
water as reasonably required by the tenant;
(11)(a) Provide a written notice to all tenants disclosing fire
safety and protection information. The landlord or his or her
authorized agent must provide a written notice to the tenant that the
dwelling unit is equipped with a smoke detection device as required in
RCW 43.44.110. The notice shall inform the tenant of the tenant's
responsibility to maintain the smoke detection device in proper
operating condition and of penalties for failure to comply with the
provisions of RCW 43.44.110(3). The notice must be signed by the
landlord or the landlord's authorized agent and tenant with copies
provided to both parties. Further, except with respect to a single-family residence, the written notice must also disclose the following:
(i) Whether the smoke detection device is hard-wired or battery
operated;
(ii) Whether the building has a fire sprinkler system;
(iii) Whether the building has a fire alarm system;
(iv) Whether the building has a smoking policy, and what that
policy is;
(v) Whether the building has an emergency notification plan for the
occupants and, if so, provide a copy to the occupants;
(vi) Whether the building has an emergency relocation plan for the
occupants and, if so, provide a copy to the occupants; and
(vii) Whether the building has an emergency evacuation plan for the
occupants and, if so, provide a copy to the occupants.
(b) The information required under this subsection may be provided
to a tenant in a multifamily residential building either as a written
notice or as a checklist that discloses whether the building has fire
safety and protection devices and systems. The checklist shall include
a diagram showing the emergency evacuation routes for the occupants.
(c) The written notice or checklist must be provided to new tenants
at the time the lease or rental agreement is signed;
(12) Provide written notice to all tenants stating whether the
dwelling unit is equipped with a carbon monoxide alarm. If the unit is
equipped with a carbon monoxide alarm, the notice must inform the
tenant of the tenant's responsibility to maintain the carbon monoxide
alarm in proper operating condition, including the replacement of
batteries when required;
(13)(a) Provide tenants with information provided or approved by
the department of health about the health hazards associated with
exposure to indoor mold. Information may be provided in written format
individually to each tenant at the time the lease or rental agreement
is signed, or may be posted in a visible, public location at the
dwelling unit property. The information must detail how tenants can
control mold growth in their dwelling units to minimize the health
risks associated with indoor mold. Landlords may obtain the
information from the department's web site or, if requested by the
landlord, the department must mail the information to the landlord in
a printed format. When developing or changing the information, the
department of health must include representatives of landlords in the
development process((. The information must be provided by the
landlord to new tenants at the time the lease or rental agreement is
signed)); and
(b) Provide tenants with information provided or approved by the
department of health about the health and safety hazards associated
with exposure to carbon monoxide. Information may be provided in
written format individually to each tenant at the time the lease or
rental agreement is signed, or may be posted in a visible, public
location at the dwelling unit property. Landlords may obtain the
information from the department's web site or, if requested by the
landlord, the department must mail the information to the landlord in
a printed format.
(((13))) (c) The landlord and his or her agents and employees are
immune from civil liability for failure to comply with (a) or (b) of
this subsection (((12) of this section)) except where the landlord and
his or her agents and employees knowingly and intentionally do not
comply with (a) or (b) of this subsection (((12) of this section)); and
(14) Designate to the tenant the name and address of the person who
is the landlord by a statement on the rental agreement or by a notice
conspicuously posted on the premises. The tenant shall be notified
immediately of any changes in writing, which must be either (a)
delivered personally to the tenant or (b) mailed to the tenant and
conspicuously posted on the premises. If the person designated in this
section does not reside in the state where the premises are located,
there shall also be designated a person who resides in the county who
is authorized to act as an agent for the purposes of service of notices
and process, and if no designation is made of a person to act as agent,
then the person to whom rental payments are to be made shall be
considered such agent. Regardless of such designation, any owner who
resides outside the state and who violates a provision of this chapter
is deemed to have submitted himself or herself to the jurisdiction of
the courts of this state and personal service of any process may be
made on the owner outside the state with the same force and effect as
personal service within the state. Any summons or process served out-of-state must contain the same information and be served in the same
manner as personal service of summons or process served within the
state, except the summons or process must require the party to appear
and answer within sixty days after such personal service out of the
state. In an action for a violation of this chapter that is filed
under chapter 12.40 RCW, service of the notice of claim outside the
state must contain the same information and be served in the same
manner as required under chapter 12.40 RCW, except the date on which
the party is required to appear must not be less than sixty days from
the date of service of the notice of claim.
No duty shall devolve upon the landlord to repair a defective
condition under this section, nor shall any defense or remedy be
available to the tenant under this chapter, where the defective
condition complained of was caused by the conduct of such tenant, his
or her family, invitee, or other person acting under his or her
control, or where a tenant unreasonably fails to allow the landlord
access to the property for purposes of repair. When the duty imposed
by subsection (1) of this section is incompatible with and greater than
the duty imposed by any other provisions of this section, the
landlord's duty shall be determined pursuant to subsection (1) of this
section.
Sec. 2 RCW 59.18.130 and 2011 c 132 s 8 are each amended to read
as follows:
Each tenant shall pay the rental amount at such times and in such
amounts as provided for in the rental agreement or as otherwise
provided by law and comply with all obligations imposed upon tenants by
applicable provisions of all municipal, county, and state codes,
statutes, ordinances, and regulations, and in addition shall:
(1) Keep that part of the premises which he or she occupies and
uses as clean and sanitary as the conditions of the premises permit;
(2) Properly dispose from his or her dwelling unit all rubbish,
garbage, and other organic or flammable waste, in a clean and sanitary
manner at reasonable and regular intervals, and assume all costs of
extermination and fumigation for infestation caused by the tenant;
(3) Properly use and operate all electrical, gas, heating, plumbing
and other fixtures and appliances supplied by the landlord;
(4) Not intentionally or negligently destroy, deface, damage,
impair, or remove any part of the structure or dwelling, with the
appurtenances thereto, including the facilities, equipment, furniture,
furnishings, and appliances, or permit any member of his or her family,
invitee, licensee, or any person acting under his or her control to do
so. Violations may be prosecuted under chapter 9A.48 RCW if the
destruction is intentional and malicious;
(5) Not permit a nuisance or common waste;
(6) Not engage in drug-related activity at the rental premises, or
allow a subtenant, sublessee, resident, or anyone else to engage in
drug-related activity at the rental premises with the knowledge or
consent of the tenant. "Drug-related activity" means that activity
which constitutes a violation of chapter 69.41, 69.50, or 69.52 RCW;
(7) Maintain the smoke detection device in accordance with the
manufacturer's recommendations, including the replacement of batteries
where required for the proper operation of the smoke detection device,
as required in RCW 43.44.110(3);
(8) Maintain any carbon monoxide alarm installed in the dwelling
unit in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations, including
the replacement of batteries when required for the proper operation of
the carbon monoxide alarm;
(9) Not engage in any activity at the rental premises that is:
(a) Imminently hazardous to the physical safety of other persons on
the premises; and
(b)(i) Entails physical assaults upon another person which result
in an arrest; or
(ii) Entails the unlawful use of a firearm or other deadly weapon
as defined in RCW 9A.04.110 which results in an arrest, including
threatening another tenant or the landlord with a firearm or other
deadly weapon under RCW 59.18.352. Nothing in this subsection (((8)))
(9) shall authorize the termination of tenancy and eviction of the
victim of a physical assault or the victim of the use or threatened use
of a firearm or other deadly weapon;
(((9))) (10) Not engage in any gang-related activity at the
premises, as defined in RCW 59.18.030, or allow another to engage in
such activity at the premises, that renders people in at least two or
more dwelling units or residences insecure in life or the use of
property or that injures or endangers the safety or health of people in
at least two or more dwelling units or residences. In determining
whether a tenant is engaged in gang-related activity, a court should
consider the totality of the circumstances, including factors such as
whether there have been a significant number of complaints to the
landlord about the tenant's activities at the property, damages done by
the tenant to the property, including the property of other tenants or
neighbors, harassment or threats made by the tenant to other tenants or
neighbors that have been reported to law enforcement agencies, any
police incident reports involving the tenant, and the tenant's criminal
history; and
(((10))) (11) Upon termination and vacation, restore the premises
to their initial condition except for reasonable wear and tear or
conditions caused by failure of the landlord to comply with his or her
obligations under this chapter. The tenant shall not be charged for
normal cleaning if he or she has paid a nonrefundable cleaning fee.