FINAL BILL REPORT

SHB 1445

                                  C 150 L 88

BYHouse Committee on Judiciary (originally sponsored by Representatives Wineberry, Armstrong, Padden, O'Brien, Cole, Crane, Anderson, Heavey, Brough, Valle, P. King, Lewis, Jacobsen, Patrick, Unsoeld, Baugher, Leonard, Meyers, Scott, Haugen, Zellinsky, Lux, Ebersole, Brekke, Kremen, Betrozoff, Pruitt, Ballard, May, Fuhrman, Doty, Sutherland, Sanders, Jesernig, Todd, Silver, Moyer, Locke, Rasmussen, Ferguson and Winsley)

Prohibiting drug-related activities in rental dwellings.

House Committe on Judiciary

Senate Committee on Law & Justice

SYNOPSIS AS ENACTED

BACKGROUND:

The Residential and Mobile Home Landlord-Tenant Acts list several duties the tenant must meet.  The landlord and the tenant may also contract for other duties in the rental agreement.  A violation of any of these duties by the tenant is justification for the landlord to initiate eviction proceedings.

A tenant is evicted through an unlawful detainer action.  The landlord must follow specific notice requirements that are described in statute.  If the tenant does not cure the default or defect within the specified period, then the landlord may proceed with an unlawful detainer action.  This civil action provides for a show cause hearing, where the parties and the witnesses are orally examined by the judge.

If the tenant loses or defaults at the show cause hearing, the judge orders a writ of restitution issued, which restores the premises to the landlord.  Once served on the tenant, the writ is enforced by the sheriff after three days.  If a trial is scheduled, the tenant may remain at the premises pending the outcome of the trial by posting a bond.

Many rental agreements prohibit the tenant from engaging in illegal activities on the premises.  Under such an agreement, drug-related activity on the premises is justification for an unlawful detainer action based on a default in the rental agreement.  However, where no such language is included in the rental agreement, the landlord may evict a tenant for illegal activities only if the activity violates a rule the landlord and tenant have agreed to, or if the illegal activity is a "nuisance" or a "business."

The burden of proof in civil actions is less than the burden in criminal proceedings. In civil actions, which include unlawful detainer, the burden of proof is a preponderance of the evidence.  In criminal proceedings, the burden of proof is beyond a reasonable doubt.  Therefore a person could be found to have engaged in illegal conduct in a civil action, but found not to have engaged in illegal conduct for the same activity in criminal proceedings because of the different burdens of proof.

SUMMARY:

Tenants are prohibited from engaging in drug-related activity on the rental premises.  If a tenant does engage in drug-related activity the landlord can use the unlawful detainer provisions to evict the tenant.  "Drug related activity" is defined as any violation of the controlled substances act, the imitation controlled substance act, or the imitation drug act.

If the basis for an unlawful detainer action is that the tenant engaged in drug-related activity at the premises, the tenant cannot avoid an unlawful detainer action by ceasing the drug activity.  If the court finds that the tenant has engaged in drug related activity, after being served with a writ of restitution the tenant may not remain at the premises by posting a bond.  The tenant may not raise as a defense any claim he or she has against the landlord.

A law enforcement agency must reasonably attempt to discover the identity of, and notify, the landlord when the law enforcement agency seizes drugs at a rented premises.

A landlord has a defense to the crime of knowingly renting or knowingly fortifying a rental unit for drug use by the tenant if:  the landlord notified a law enforcement agency of the drug activity, or the landlord processed an unlawful detainer action against the tenant.

VOTES ON FINAL PASSAGE:

      House 94   2

      Senate    49     0(Senate amended)

      House             (House refused to concur)

Free Conference Committee

      Senate    48     0

      House 97   0

EFFECTIVE:June 9, 1988