SSB 1011 (LSB 1563XC (2) 91)

SENATE FILE _____ 

BY  (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT BILL BY CHAIRPERSON WEBSTER)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the provision of water service for manufactured home communities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  384.84B  Water service to manufactured home communities and mobile home parks.
   1.  As used in this section:
   a.  “Home space” means a mobile home space as defined in section 562B.7.
   b.  “Manufactured home community” means a manufactured home community or a mobile home park as those terms are defined in section 435.1.
   c.  “Water system” means a public water supply system as defined in section 455B.171 or water utility as defined in section 423.3.
   2.  This section applies only to manufactured home communities that, currently or upon completion of improvements to the community, are connected to a water system’s water main for water service and have individual water submeters for each occupied home space in accordance with subsection 3.
   3.  A manufactured home community connected to a water system’s water main for water service may, at its sole discretion, elect to have such water system directly provide water service to the individual tenants within such community under a written water service agreement to be signed by the water system and the landlord of the manufactured home community pursuant to the following terms and conditions:
   a.  The landlord of a manufactured home community desiring to invoke the rights under this section shall notify the water system of its election to have the water system directly provide water service to the individual tenants within the community.
   b.  After receiving a notification pursuant to paragraph “a”, the water system shall promptly perform the following actions:
   (1)  Notify the landlord of the manufactured home community of its standards and specifications for submeters, meter pits, shutoff valves, and related plumbing facilities, provided however that any and all such standards and specifications must be reasonable and necessary and shall be no greater or more burdensome than those required of other similar properties to which the water system provides water service including residential rental properties and horizontal property regimes.
   (2)  Inspect any currently installed water submeters and related plumbing facilities within the manufactured home community and thereafter notify the landlord whether the currently installed water submeters and plumbing facilities are compliant with its standards and specifications with or without modifications or whether new water submeters or other facilities must be installed.
   c.  After the landlord’s receipt of the information set forth in paragraph “b”, and in the event the landlord still desires to have the water system directly provide water service to the tenants, the water system and landlord shall thereafter work in good faith to enter into a water service agreement under which the water system shall directly provide water service to the individual tenants within the manufactured home community pursuant to the terms and conditions set forth in this paragraph. Unless otherwise mutually agreed upon by both parties, the water service agreement shall include the following terms and conditions:
   (1)  The landlord of the manufactured home community shall comply with the water system’s standards and specifications for submeters, meter pits, shutoff valves, and other related plumbing facilities necessary for the water system to directly provide water service to the tenants for their water consumption pursuant to individual water submeters for each home space, provided however that any and all such standards and specifications shall be reasonable and necessary, shall not require anything other than reasonably accessible meter pits in or adjacent to each home space, and shall not be any greater or more burdensome than those standards and specifications required of other similar properties to which the water system provides service including residential rental properties and horizontal property regimes.
   (2)  The landlord of the manufactured home community shall be responsible for the completion of all improvements, and for all costs associated therewith, relating to the furnishing and installation of submeters and related facilities within the community required under subparagraph (1).
   (3)  The water system shall establish direct accounts with the tenants of the manufactured home community and directly bill the tenants under such accounts for their water consumption shown by the submeters, with the water system performing all tasks relating to the reading of the submeters and billing the individual residents based upon those submeter readings.
   (4)  The water system shall read and bill the landlord for the consumption shown by the master meter, after deducting all billings to tenants for consumption under their submeters, with such deductions being provisional only and being subject to rebilling to the landlord in the event of a tenant nonpayment as provided elsewhere within this subsection.
   (5)  The water system shall provide the water service under the water service agreement in accordance with all applicable laws and its regular rules and regulations for water service to customers, and all terms and rates imposed by the water system under the water service agreement shall be no greater or more burdensome than those terms and rates imposed on other similar properties to which the water system provides service including residential rental properties and horizontal property regimes.
   (6)  The landlord of the manufactured home community shall grant reasonable and necessary utility access and easement for the water system for the purposes of reading, maintaining, repairing, and replacing submeters, and initiating and terminating service.
   (7)  The landlord of the manufactured home community shall retain full legal and financial responsibility for the ownership, maintenance, operation, upgrade, repair, and replacement of the private water infrastructure within the manufactured home community, including but not limited to all water distribution and plumbing facilities, lines, meter pits, and submeters, serving the community and all home spaces from the point of, and including, the incorporation of the service line at the water system’s master meter; shall ensure all private infrastructure components are in good working order; and shall facilitate the prompt completion of, and payment for, any repairs necessary to the submeters as directed by the water system.
   (8)  The water system shall retain full legal and financial responsibility for the ownership, maintenance, operation, repair, and replacement of the water system’s water main and master meter for the manufactured home community.
   (9)  The landlord of the manufactured home community shall provide to the water system documentation in regard to all existing and new tenants for each home space within the community reflecting the implementation of the water service to be provided by the water system to the individual tenants under the water service agreement and shall otherwise provide the water system with all necessary tenant information to enable the water system to communicate with and provide service to all existing and new tenants under the water service agreement.
   (10)  For existing manufactured home communities, the landlord of the manufactured home community shall be responsible for notifying its tenants of the change in the provision of water service pursuant to this section, with the landlord being required to provide tenants with the same notice as is required for rent increases under section 562B.14, subsection 7.
   (11)  The landlord of the manufactured home community shall be jointly responsible for any and all delinquent charges associated with water service to an individual tenant. The water system’s collection rights in the event of nonpayment for water or other service by an individual tenant shall include all rights provided by Iowa law, including those provided in Iowa Code section 384.84, and shall include the right to terminate service and impose a lien upon the manufactured home community, with the landlord waiving any right that it may otherwise have to establish an exemption from the right to impose a lien by the water system.
   (12)  The water system shall not be liable to the landlord or any tenants of the manufactured home community for any service furnished for any reason other than the water system’s willful misconduct. The water service agreement shall include an indemnification provision under which the landlord of the manufactured home community indemnifies and holds harmless the water system from any and all claims and liabilities, including reasonable attorney fees and costs, arising from the tenants for any service furnished by the water system for any reason other than the water system’s willful misconduct.
   (13)  If the water system also provides sewer and storm water services to the manufactured home community, and if the landlord of the manufactured home community also desires, at its sole discretion, to have the water system directly provide such services to tenants, then the parties shall also agree upon reasonable and necessary terms relating to all sewer and storm water services and charges that the water system, or its affiliate, provides to the manufactured home community.
   (14)  The parties shall agree upon all other reasonable and necessary terms within the water service agreement to effectuate the water system’s provision of water service to the landlord and individual tenants within the manufactured home community, provided that all terms and rates imposed by the water system shall be no greater or more burdensome than those terms and rates imposed on other similar properties to which the water system provides service including residential rental properties and horizontal property regimes.
   d.  At the discretion of the water system, for any charges and bills to tenants remaining unpaid after no less than fifty days, the water system may elect to transfer such delinquent charges and bills to the landlord’s account, which shall be paid by landlord in accordance with the water system’s normal collection terms.
   e.  Based upon the landlord of the manufactured home community being jointly responsible for delinquent charges associated with water service to individual tenants, the water system shall not require deposits from the tenants that would otherwise be permitted for residential rental properties under section 384.84.
   4.  Unless expressly provided otherwise in this section, the provisions of section 384.84 for the provision of water service to residential rental properties shall apply to a manufactured home community for which the landlord has elected to have the water system directly provide water service to the individual tenants within the community.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to the provision of water service at a manufactured home community. The bill provides the landlord of a manufactured home community with the ability to choose whether water service is directly provided to tenants or provided to the community as a whole. A manufactured home community connected to a water main may sign a written water service agreement to provide water service to tenants individually in the community. The landlord of the manufactured home community must provide notice to the water system of the desire for individual water service. After notification from the landlord, the water system shall inspect the currently installed plumbing facilities in the community and provide the standards and specifications for individual use. The water system shall provide notice to the landlord of the plumbing facilities’ compliance with the standards and specifications.
   The bill requires a water service agreement with a manufactured home community to include certain terms and conditions. The landlord is responsible for complying with the water system’s reasonable and necessary standards and specifications provided prior to the agreement. Any improvements and costs associated with installing submeters and related facilities shall be the responsibility of the landlord. Tenants shall have direct accounts with the water system to view water consumption and corresponding bills. The landlord shall be provisionally billed for the water consumption shown on the master meter less the payments from the tenants and shall be subject to rebilling in the event of nonpayment by a tenant.
   The landlord must provide utility access and easement to the water system to read, maintain, repair, and replace submeters, and initiate and terminate service. The landlord shall retain full legal and financial responsibility for the private water infrastructure in the manufactured home community and is responsible for any repairs and corresponding payments necessary. The landlord shall provide the water system with documentation of the manufactured home community tenants. The landlord must notify all existing tenants of the change in the provision of water service.
   The water service agreement shall include an indemnification provision to hold the water system harmless from claims and liabilities arising from the tenants for any reason other than the water system’s willful misconduct. If the water system provides sewer and storm water services to the manufactured home community, the landlord and water system shall also agree to all sewer and storm water services and charges. The water system must ensure that all terms and rates are no greater or more burdensome than those imposed on other similar properties.
   At the discretion of the water system, unpaid bills remaining after 50 days may be transferred to the landlord for payment. The water system may not require deposits from tenants for the services. Unless otherwise provided by the bill, the provisions of Code section 384.84 for water service to residential rental properties shall apply to a manufactured home community for which the landlord has elected to have the water system directly provide water service to the individual tenants within the community.