CHAPTER 248


99-H 6463 am
Enacted 7/1/99


A N     A C T

RELATING TO MOBILE AND MANUFACTURED HOMES

Introduced By: Representatives M. Anderson, Lowe, Henseler, S. Anderson and Long

Date Introduced : May 6, 1999

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Sections 31-44-1, 31-44-1.6, 31-44-1.7, 31-44-3, 31-44-17 and 31-44-18 of the General Laws in Chapter 31-44 entitled "Mobile and Manufactured Homes" are hereby amended to read as follows:

31-44-1. Definitions. -- As used in this chapter:

(a) [Deleted by P.L. 1995, ch. 134, section 2.]

(b) "Department" means the department of business regulation.

{ADD (c) "Director" means the director of the Department of Business Regulation. ADD}

{DEL (c) DEL} {ADD (d) ADD} "Entry requirements" means any written, nondiscriminatory criteria for resident selection incorporated into the rules and regulations of a mobile and manufactured home park which are equally applied by the licensee to all purchasers and prospective residents.

{DEL (d) DEL} {ADD (e) ADD} "Fee schedule" means an itemized list of fees for goods or services sold or performed by a mobile and manufactured home park licensee including, but not limited to, the entrance fee, hook-up fee, and maintenance fee, if any.

{DEL (e) DEL} {ADD (f) ADD} "Hook-up fee" means a reasonable fee for the services required to install a mobile and manufactured home on a mobile and manufactured home space or lot. The charge shall include the cost of connecting water and sewer lines, electrical connections, tie-downs, removal of wheels or axles, steps, if necessary, and other necessary services, including but not limited to the creation of new pads or piers.

{DEL (f) DEL} {ADD (g) ADD} "Household" means one (1) or more persons occupying a housing unit.

{DEL (g) DEL} {ADD (h) ADD} "Licensee" means any person or agent licensed under section 31-44-1.6 thereof who is directly or indirectly engaged in the business of selling mobile and manufactured homes or who operates and maintains a mobile and manufactured home park under the provisions of this chapter.

{DEL (h) DEL} {ADD (i) ADD} "Mobile and manufactured home" means a detached residential unit designed:

(1) For a long term occupancy and containing sleeping accommodations, a flush toilet, and a tub or shower bath and kitchen facilities, and having both permanent plumbing and electrical connections for attachment to outside systems;

(2) To be transported on its own wheels or on a flatbed or other trailer or detachable wheels; and

(3) To be placed on pads, piers, or tied down, at the site where it is to be occupied as a residence complete and ready for occupancy, except for minor and incidental unpacking and assembly operations and connection to utilities systems.

(j) "Mobile and manufactured home park" or "park" means a plot of ground upon which four (4) or more mobile and manufactured homes, occupied for residential purposes are located.

(k) "Mobile and manufactured home space or lot" means a plot of ground within a mobile and manufactured home park designed for the accommodation of one mobile and manufactured home.

(l) "Owner" means a licensee or permittee or any person who owns, operates, or maintains a mobile and manufactured home park.

(m) "Prospective resident" means an applicant for admission to a mobile and manufactured home park who is ready, willing, and able to buy a mobile and manufactured home owned and offered for sale by a licensee or resident, and who is able to meet the entrance requirements of the rules of the park.

(n) "Protected lawful action" means any report of a violation of this chapter, or of any applicable building or health code, or any other justified complaint to a governmental authority, {DELor any other justified lawful act by the resident(s) or prospective resident(s). DEL} or any other justified lawful act by the resident(s) or prospective resident(s).

(o) "Reprisal" means any act taken against the resident(s) which is intended as a penalty for any protected lawful action taken by the resident(s).

(p) "Resident" means an owner or renter occupying a mobile and manufactured home in a mobile and manufactured home park with the consent of the owner as defined in subdivision (h) of this section.

(q) "Security deposit" means a sum not to exceed the monthly rental which a licensee may require a resident of a rented mobile or manufactured home to deposit as security in case of damage caused by the resident in excess of ordinary wear and tear.

(r) "Standards for mobile and manufactured homes" means any written, nondiscriminatory minimum specifications for structural soundness, safety, and habitability adopted by the department or any other government agency.

31-44-1.6. Fees and charges for licenses. -- (a) The department of business regulation shall promulgate rules to establish fees and charges for the issuance of licenses or permits required herein.

(b) The fees and charges under this chapter shall be applied solely to fulfilling the various responsibilities of the department as specified within this chapter. {DEL In addition to the administration of fees and charges for licenses such responsibilities will include but not be limited to: providing space for periodic public meetings of the commission in its capacity as an advisory body for certain responsibilities it has been given under this chapter; filing and providing storage space for commission records, correspondence and other information as required by this chapter; the provision of secretarial services and recording equipment for recording minutes of meetings, providing meeting transcripts and conveying information to and from the commission and other interested parties; and paying for general mailings and the periodic publication and dissemination of information as may be necessary under sections 31-44-1.4 and 31-44-1.5. DEL}

(c) All fees and charges collected by the department under this chapter shall be deposited as general revenues.

{DEL (d) A yearly unaudited financial report shall be provided by the department to the commission of the income and expenditures of all monies from said restricted account. DEL}

31-44-1.7. Mobile and manufactured home park operation -- License. -- (a) A person shall not operate a mobile and manufactured home park without a license.

(b) Upon completion, review, and approval of certifications, the department of business regulation shall grant a license to operate a mobile and manufactured home park.

(c) An annual license shall be granted and renewed by the department based upon the filing of (i) leases and regulations that are applicable to the park, (ii) certification by the municipality in which the park is located that it is in compliance with all applicable land use regulations of the municipality, (iii) certification from the appropriate state agencies or municipal departments that the park has an adequate and operational sewage disposal system and water supply and that all applicable state and local taxes have been paid, {DEL and DEL} (iv) payment of an annual fee of fifteen dollars ($15.00) per occupied site in the park {ADD and (v) applicant files a fee schedule with the department ADD}. Certifications for individual sewage disposal systems (ISDS) regulated by the department of environmental management shall be provided by an ISDS designer, licensed pursuant to section 5-56-1, who possesses the appropriate class of license for the type and size of system to be certified and any costs for these certifications shall be the responsibility of the licensee. The director of the department may by regulation provide for additional requirements and may place reasonable conditions on the grant of any license.

(d) If a person submits a timely application for renewal of a license and pays the appropriate fees, the person may continue to operate a mobile and manufactured home park unless notified that the application for renewal is not approved. In the event anyone is denied a license he or she will be afforded a hearing before the department.

31-44-3. Rules and regulations. -- The following requirements and restrictions shall apply to all mobile and manufactured home parks:

(1) A mobile and manufactured home park licensee {DEL may DEL} {ADD shall ADD} promulgate reasonable rules and regulations which shall specify standards for mobile and manufactured homes in the park, if any, entry requirements, if any, and rules governing the rental or occupancy of a mobile and manufactured home lot and mobile and manufactured home park;

(2) Current rules and regulations promulgated by a mobile and manufactured home park licensee shall be delivered by the licensee to a prospective resident prior to entering into a rental agreement, and to the resident(s) as soon as promulgated and whenever revised. A copy of the rules and regulations shall be filed with the {DEL commission DEL} {ADD director ADD} and posted in a conspicuous place in the mobile and manufactured home park;

(3) Any rule or change in rent which does not apply uniformly to all mobile and manufactured home residents of a similar class shall create a rebuttable presumption that such rule or change in rent is unreasonable;

(4) (i) A mobile and manufactured home park licensee shall not impose any conditions of rental or occupancy which restricts the mobile and manufactured home owner in his or her choice of a seller of fuel, furnishings, goods, services, accessories, or other utilities connected with the rental or occupancy of a mobile and manufactured home lot.

(ii) The licensee who purchases electricity or gas (natural, manufactured, or similar gaseous substance) from any public utility or municipally owned utility or who purchases water from a water system for the purpose of supplying or reselling the electricity or gas to any other person to whom he leases, lets, rents, subleases, sublets, or subrents the premises upon which the electricity, gas, or water is to be used shall not charge, demand, or receive directly or indirectly, any amount for the resale of such electricity, gas, or water greater than that amount charged by the public utility or municipally owned utility from which the electricity, or gas was purchased or by the public water system from which the water was purchased;

(iii) Provided, however, if said licensee incurs costs in bringing the utility service to individual units, or in utilizing individual meters or in such similar cost, said licensee will be entitled to a return for such investment.

(iv) The park operator shall post in a conspicuous place the prevailing utility rate schedule as published by the serving utility.

(5) If any mobile and manufactured home park licensee adds, changes, deletes, or amends any rule governing the rental or occupancy of a mobile and manufactured home lot in a mobile and manufactured home park, a new copy of all such rules shall be furnished to all mobile and manufactured home residents in the park, and filed with the {DEL commission DEL} {ADD department ADD} for its review, recommendations, if any, and recording for future reference at least forty-five (45) days prior to the effective date of the addition, change, deletion, or amendment. The new copy furnished to the resident shall be signed by both the mobile and manufactured home park owner and the mobile and manufactured home park resident;

(6) If any mobile and manufactured home park licensee changes the rent of a mobile and manufactured home lot, notice of the change shall be given to the mobile and manufactured home resident at least sixty (60) days prior to the effective date of the change;

(7) The owners of individual mobile and manufactured homes shall be entitled to have as many occupants in their homes as is consistent with the number of bedrooms and/or bed spaces certified by the manufacturer; provided that the occupancy does not violate any provision of the general laws or other municipal regulations. All bedrooms shall consist of a minimum of fifty (50) square feet of floor area and bedrooms designed and certified for two (2) or more people shall consist of seventy (70) square feet of floor area plus fifty (50) square feet for each person in excess of two (2). If there is sufficient bed space, according to the criteria set forth in this subdivision, additional rent or charges may not be imposed by a park owner or manager for any person or persons moving in with current resident owners of a mobile and manufactured home;

(8) A prospective resident shall not be charged an entrance fee for the privilege of leasing or occupying a mobile and manufactured home lot, except as provided in section 31-44-4; provided, however, that when a mobile and manufactured home is transported onto the mobile and manufactured home park, an entrance fee may be charged; notwithstanding the foregoing however, if the park owner received a commission for the sale of the mobile and manufactured home, no entrance fee shall be charged. A reasonable charge for the fair value of the owner's cost in obtaining, preparing, and maintaining a lot or for the fair value of services performed in placing a mobile and manufactured home on a lot shall not be considered an entrance fee, but shall be deemed a hook-up fee or maintenance fee and shall be detailed in the fee schedule. No tenant, or person seeking space in a mobile and manufactured housing park, shall be required to purchase manufactured housing from any particular person unless the person designated is the park owner or operator and the requirement is imposed only in connection with the initial leasing or renting of a newly-constructed lot or space not previously leased or rented to any other person. A resident may remove and replace a mobile and manufactured home, provided however, that the resident shall install the mobile and manufactured home in accordance with present park standards regarding structural requirements and aesthetic maintenance in the mobile and manufactured home park where the replacement occurs, and in accordance with minimum standards for mobile and manufactured homes established by the United States department of housing and urban development. No fee shall be charged by the licensee to residents as a result of the resident's installation of cable television;

(9) Prior to signing a lease a licensee shall dispose in writing to the prospective resident: (a) the rental for the space or lot, and (b) any charges, including service charges, imposed by the licensee. The licensee shall dispose the rent and charges which were in effect during the three (3) preceding years or the period during which the licensee has operated the mobile home park, whichever is shorter;

(10) A copy of the fee schedule shall be filed with the commission and posted in a conspicuous place in the mobile and manufactured home park; and

(11) (a) A resident shall not be charged a fee for keeping a pet in a mobile and manufactured home park unless the park owner or management actually provides special facilities or services for pets. If special pet facilities are maintained by the park owner or management, the fee charged shall reasonably relate to the cost of maintenance of the facilities or services and the number of pets kept in the park;

(b) If the park owner or management of a mobile and manufactured home park implements a rule or regulation prohibiting residents from keeping pets in the park, the new rule or regulation shall not apply to prohibit the residents from continuing to keep the pets currently in the park if the pet otherwise conforms with the previous park rules or regulations relating to pets. However, if the pet dies, the resident shall have the right to replace the pet.

(c) Any rule or regulation prohibiting residents from keeping pets in a mobile and manufactured home park shall not apply to guide, signal, or service animals.

{ADD31-44-10. Penalty. -- ADD} {ADDAny person who violates the licensing provisions of this chapter may be fined by the department an amount not in excess of five thousand dollars ($5,000), lose their license according to prescribed procedure, after a hearing. Provided, further, any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter may also be fined by the appropriate court according to existing court procedure.ADD}

31-44-17. Filing of complaint with department -- Notice -- Rules of evidence not binding. -- (a) Any resident of a mobile/manufactured housing park or any owner of a mobile/manufactured housing park may petition the director by filing a complaint with the department of business regulation director and paying a twenty-five dollar ($25.00) filing fee which shall be used to defray the costs of the director. Such filing fee may be waived by the director if he or she or his or her agent determines that such fee will cause an unfair financial burden on the petitioner. After review of the claim and a decision by the director that the matter has merit and is not frivolous, the director shall schedule a hearing within sixty (60) days from receipt of the claim. If the director finds the claim to be without merit or to be frivolous, it shall dismiss the complaint and explain in writing to the complainant its reasons for dismissing the complaint.

(b) The director or his or her agent shall serve notice, in writing, of the time and place of the hearing upon all appropriate parties at least twenty (20) days prior to the date of the hearing. Both parties to the complaint may be represented by counsel.

(c) The director or his or her agent shall not be bound by common law or statutory rules of evidence but may admit all testimony having a reasonable probative value. {ADD Complaints filed shall be handled in accordance with the departments' rules of practice and the administration procedure act. ADD} It may exclude evidence which, in the opinion of the director or his or her agent, is immaterial, irrelevant, or unduly repetitious.

31-44-18. Decisions, judicial review and enforcement. -- (a) When the director makes a decision, an order shall be made in writing and shall include finding of facts. The findings of fact shall be accompanied by a concise and explicit statement of the underlying facts supporting the findings. The parties shall be notified by mail of any decision or order.

(b) A decision of the director may be appealed, by either party, by applying for a rehearing or appealing to the superior court for the county in which either party resides, within {DEL twenty (20) DEL} {ADD thirty (30) ADD} days of the date of the decision pursuant to the provisions of the administrative procedures acts, chapter 35 of title 42.

(c) If no timely appeal is taken pursuant to paragraph (b) herein, the decision of the director shall become final. The director shall file a certified abstract of any final decision with the clerk of the superior court in the county of residence of the complainant. The clerk of such court shall enter judgment thereon, and such judgment may be enforced as with any final judgment of the superior court.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.



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