National & State: Governmental Affairs
Care to join this committee? Call Karen in the SLAA office at 314-205-8844.
Governmental Affairs, November 2022
Here are some key takeaways from NAA for the month of October. This month I have chosen to highlight a few issues that should look familiar. The issues we currently face on a local level are becoming the common experience of many local governments.
So Many Inspections:
Laws that mandate inspections for apartment housing exist in a variety of forms in thousands of towns, cities and counties throughout the country. These programs are intended to ensure public health and safety, mitigate blight, and abate nuisance and overcrowding through enforcement of building and health codes. Mandatory inspection programs are composed of four essential components: registration, fees or taxes, business licensing and inspections by code enforcement officials. Property owners are commonly required to register all units with the municipality and assessed a per unit fee or tax that is levied to cover the costs of the inspection program. These fees typically range from $10 to $100 per unit. Once these requirements have been met, the provider is granted a business license to legally rent within the jurisdiction and is subject to annual inspections, re-inspections and inspections at random. Fee-funded inspection ordinances undermine housing affordability by unnecessarily increasing operating costs for housing providers. These expenditures are often passed on to residents thereby increasing consumer costs. Providers are also subjected to administrative delays which could affect their ability to operate if violations are found.
We share the viewpoint of NAA. Rental housing inspection laws place an unnecessary financial hardship on owners, infringe on personal privacy rights, and single out apartment housing while excluding other property types. NAA encourages policymakers to consider other proven approaches that target chronic code violations, such as complaint-driven property inspection programs.
Waste Management:
Local governments have long been perceived as responsible for providing waste collection and disposal as an essential public service. However, waste management services have increasingly become the target of privatization efforts by local officials seeking to reduce or eliminate costly obligations from budget line items. Reductions in revenue sharing by states have forced some localities to drastically pare back spending and turn to administrative fees to raise revenue. NAA opposes legislation that limits trash collection at apartment communities or requires additional fees from rental housing providers for service. As members of their community, apartment developers, operators, and their residents fund municipal waste management and therefore are entitled to the same access and quality of services provided to owners of single-family homes.
Water and Billing:
In the face of rising water costs, housing providers have increasingly moved to directly bill residents for water through either installing submeters or using Ratio Utility Billing Systems (RUBS). Utility regulators in some states and localities have attempted to curb the ability of apartment owners to engage in this practice, alleging it amounts to a resource's sale or resale. States and localities should take care to exempt property owners when considering utility-related legislation or regulatory code changes that require or encourage direct water billing practices. Lawmakers should allow property owners to decide what type of direct water billing system works for them.
State and local agencies have attempted to limit the ability of apartment providers to directly bill residents for water, arguing the practice amounts to the resource's sale or resale. Regulators frequently take issue with fees related to such billing programs, implying that property owners and third-party billing companies are unfairly profiting from the billing process. However, any limitations on the two types of direct water billing would force owners to estimate water costs and include them in the cost of rent, leaving owners on the hook for increased use above that estimate.
Consumer Privacy:
Consumer data breaches leave the apartment industry just as vulnerable as common consumer sectors. Apartment firms increasingly operate across multiple states and must comply with a patchwork of 48 different state laws governing data security and privacy. This regulatory framework drives up costs, which ultimately impacts housing affordability. Given the ever-expanding cyber-threat landscape, rental housing owners and operators have made defense against these vulnerabilities a top priority. NAA is working with congress to create legislation that will create a single national data security and breach notification standard that is reasonable, flexible and scalable.
Governmental Affairs, March 2022
National Updates:
FCC Broadband Changes and Time Frames
In December the FCC announced “proposals” to regulations aimed at refreshing the record on broadband competition and choice in the multifamily and commercial real estate sectors. Less than one month later, those proposals became a reality. Under the revised rules, broadband providers are:
- Blocked from entering into exclusive and graduated revenue sharing agreements;
- Required to disclose the presence of an exclusive marketing arrangement in material distributed to residents or prospective residents; and
- Reminded that sale-and-leaseback arrangements are prohibited under federal code. Read more
Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule
Changes have now been implemented with respect to requirements regarding lead-based paint activities on pre-1978 properties. The EPA is withdrawing its FAQ pertaining to Property Management Companies effective March 21, 2022. The FAQ exempts Property Management Companies from certification and recordkeeping requirements if they hired certified firms to perform covered activities and did not themselves employ workers who engaged in covered tasks. Read more
Congress Passes Bill Making Predispute Arbitration Agreements Unenforceable for Sexual Assault Harassment Disputes
On March 3, 2022, President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021, which amends the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) to provide that, at the election of an individual (or their representative) who is alleging sexual harassment or assault, a predispute arbitration agreement or waiver will be invalid and unenforceable with respect to a case filed under federal, tribal, or state law. The Act applies to any dispute or claim arising or accruing on or after its enactment. Read more
Congressional Priorities:
- Support credible and proven policies to address the housing affordability crisis while opposing approaches that undermine the effective operation and financial health of rental housing.
- Revitalize Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers to enable greater participation by private housing providers and expand affordable options for low and moderate-income Americans.
- Establish federal incentives for local governments to remove barriers to housing development and rehabilitation and support funding for unmet infrastructure needs that directly impact housing.
- Reauthorize and reform the National Flood Insurance Program and support more effective coverage for the industry. Ensure attainable coverage options for other operational risks such as cyber, liability and pandemics. Read more
Local News:
“Safer+Simpler St. Louis County Coalition”
The “Safer+Simpler” Coalition is an alliance of organizations committed to the vision, goals and objectives as they relate to pursing a consistent set of codes pertaining to unifying building codes, inspections, and permitting in St. Louis County through the collective work of stakeholders, governmental officials, and associated organizations. The result of these efforts are anticipated to reduce complexities inherent in updating and enforcing complex building codes. Simplifying these codes should help promote growth in the St. Louis area as studies reveal many avoid our market due to the complexities and inefficiencies of our current processes (which differ amongst the numerous municipalities).
This is anticipated to be a two-year long project which we hope results in a ballot initiative allowing St. Louis County voters a chance to simplify the insanity that is numerous in the varying municipal codes. SLAA will be asking for your help to not only promote the initiative, but also to provide input for a collection of “best practices”. This gives us an opportunity to have a seat at the drafting table and say in how this should work.
Governmental Affairs, November 2021
As the eviction moratorium ends, the fact that we are still very much, facing an affordable housing crisis is becoming even more apparent. The federal eviction moratoriums did nothing to address the underlying financial distress of renters and could have long-term implications for the stability of the housing industry. This coupled with the push back the labor force is feeling from decades of low and stagnant wages; it seems almost certain that significant changes are coming to the multifamily housing industry.
Congress is now being asked to make these issues a priority and it’s the belief of some, that we need to strike while the iron is hot. The fact that our industry was the only one completely “held hostage”, might give us leverage we need to push back.
Congressional Priorities: Read more
National Updates, FEMA
The Biden administration announced on November 9 that FEMA will continue to cover the full costs of COVID-19 response activities eligible under FEMA’s Public Assistance (PA) program through April 1, 2022. The 100% cost reimbursement includes costs associated with non-congregate sheltering for individuals experiencing homelessness. In an executive order issued in January 2021, President Biden directed FEMA to cover 100% of approved costs. He extended the guidance through the end of the year. Read more
State News:
More than 2,800 evictions have been filed in Jackson County so far in 2021. Legal aid attorneys expect those numbers to increase now that the federal eviction moratorium efforts have ended. Across Missouri, 94,000 households were behind on rent as of early August. Read more
From the New York Times:
By Glenn Thrush and Conor Dougherty
Published Sept. 10, 2021 and Updated Oct. 18, 2021
“For once, Washington seemed to get in front of a crisis"
Governmental Affairs, June 2021
National Level
- Section 8 Reform Alert - Reforming Section 8 has been a long-sought-after legislative priority of the NAA. The Choice in Affordable Housing Act incentivizes the participation of the private rental housing industry in Section 8 HCV program by enacting critical reforms to the program.
- Housing Affordability Alert - Congress is also considering two other pieces of legislation, the Yes In My Backyard (YIMBY) Act, and the Housing Supply and Affordability Act. These bills will mitigate the housing affordability crisis by helping to remove barriers to local development of housing.