Title 45
Towns and Cities

Chapter 24.2
Minimum Housing Standards

§ 45-24.2-3. Powers of councils.

(a) For the purpose of promoting the public health, safety, morals, or general welfare, and for the purpose of making dwellings and dwelling places safe, sanitary, and fit for human habitation, any city or town council has powers in accordance with the provisions of this chapter within the limits of the city or town, by ordinance, to pass, ordain, establish, and amend ordinances, rules, and regulations for the establishment and enforcement of minimum standards for dwellings.

(b) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the ordinance, rules, and regulations may include:

(1) Minimum standards with respect to facilities and equipment in dwellings including, but not limited to, provisions relating to kitchen sinks, flush toilets and lavatory basins, bathtubs and showers, hot and cold water lines, rubbish and garbage storage and disposal facilities, cooking facilities, water heating facilities, window shades and screens, and provision for elimination and prevention of insect and vermin infestation.

(2) Minimum standards with respect to lighting, ventilation, refrigeration, and heating, including, but not limited to, provisions relating to window area, room light and ventilation, electrical outlets, heating facilities, lighting of halls and stairways, and refrigerated storage space.

(3) Minimum standards relating to the healthful, safe, and sanitary maintenance of parts of dwelling and dwelling units including, but not limited to, provisions relating to weathertight, watertight, and rodent proof foundations, floors, walls, ceilings, roofs, windows and doors, the condition and repair of stairs and porches, the condition of plumbing fixtures, imperviousness of floor surfaces to water, and the functioning of supplied facilities, pieces of equipment, and utilities.

(4) Minimum standards with respect to space, use, and location including, but not limited to, provisions relating to floor space per occupant, size of rooms, bathroom access, ceiling height, cellar and basement occupancy, and means of egress.

(5) Provisions fixing responsibilities of owners, operators, and occupants for the condition, maintenance, use, and occupancy of dwellings and dwelling premises.

(6) Provisions that any person having any duty to perform under the provisions of this chapter, or any ordinance, rule, or regulation adopted pursuant to the authority of this chapter, may enter the dwelling and dwelling premises at all reasonable times for the purpose of examination, inspection, and survey. In the event entry is denied or resisted, an order to examine, inspect, and survey may be obtained from a court of competent jurisdiction as provided for in § 45-24.2-8.

(7) Provisions that the enforcing officer may order the repair, alteration, or improvement of a dwelling or dwelling premises by the owner or other person or persons responsible for the repair, alteration, or improvement under the provisions of the ordinance, rules, and regulations.

(8) Provisions that the enforcing officer may declare any dwelling or dwelling premises unfit for human habitation if the officer finds that conditions exist in that dwelling which are a serious hazard or immediate peril to the health, safety, or welfare of the occupants, the occupants of neighboring dwellings, or the general public.

(9) Provisions that whenever any dwelling or dwelling premises are found by the enforcing officer to be unfit for human habitation because of defects which constitute a serious hazard of immediate peril to the health, safety, or welfare of the occupants of the dwelling or the public, the enforcing officer may:

(i) Order the dwelling or dwelling premises to be vacated and secured until a time that he or she determines that the dwelling is again fit for human habitation;

(ii) Order the removal or demolition of a dwelling whenever the repair, alteration, or improvement of the dwelling cannot be made at a cost reasonably related to the value of the dwelling; provided, that the owner of the dwelling may at the owner’s discretion, repair, alter, or improve the dwelling regardless of the cost, within a time period specified in the order;

(iii) Repair, alter, or improve or cause to be vacated and secured, or both, the dwelling or dwelling premises at the expense of the owner or other responsible person or persons, whenever the owner or other responsible person or persons fail to comply with an order to repair, alter, or improve or to vacate and secure the dwelling; provided, that the cost of the repair, alteration, or improvement is reasonably related to the value of the dwelling or dwelling premises;

(iv) Remove or demolish the dwelling at the expense of the owner whenever the owner fails to comply with an order issued to remove or demolish in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b)(9)(ii).

(10) Provisions that whenever the owner fails to comply with any order as provided for in subsections (b)(9)(i) and (b)(9)(ii), the cost incurred by the enforcing officer or any person doing work or furnishing materials by the officer order under the provisions of subsections (b)(9)(iii) and (b)(9)(iv) shall be a lien against the real property, and the lien shall be enforced in the same manner provided or authorized by law for enforcement of common law liens on personal property. The lien shall be recorded. If the dwelling is removed or demolished by the enforcing officer, the officer may sell the materials of the dwelling, and the net cost of demolition and removal shall be charged to the owner and, if any balance remains, it shall be credited to the owner.

(11) Provisions that any notices and order may be recorded in the same manner as the recording of “lis pendens” notices.

(12) Provisions that the owner of any dwelling which has been found by the enforcing officer to be unfit for human habitation in accordance with the provisions of subsection (b)(8) shall not sell, transfer, mortgage, lease, or otherwise dispose of the dwelling until the conditions causing the dwelling to be unfit for human habitation have been corrected or until the owner has furnished the intended grantee, mortgagee, or lessee a true copy of the order and has notified the enforcing officer, in writing, of the owner’s intent to transfer, sell, mortgage, lease, or otherwise dispose of the dwelling. A transferee, mortgagee, or lessee who has received actual notice or constructive notice is bound by the order on the date of the transfer, mortgage, or lease without service of further notice upon him or her by the enforcing officer.

(13) Provisions that the enforcing officer may make rules and regulations consistent with the proper enforcement of any ordinance enacted under the provisions of this chapter.

(14) Provisions that whenever an owner fails to comply with any order as provided for in subsections (b)(9)(i) and (b)(9)(ii), the enforcing officer may notify the community’s redevelopment agency and request that the agency acquire the property in question and transfer title to an appropriate limited equity housing cooperative if the cooperative is able to demonstrate its ability to finance the correction of the property’s minimum housing code violations and make the housing available to low and/or moderate income households.