SENATE BILL NO. 1145
A bill to require landlords to provide reasonable accommodations for tenants when a certain number of elevators are not functional in multifamily dwellings; to prescribe penalties or civil sanctions; and to provide for the powers and duties of certain state and local governmental officers and entities.
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 1. This act may be cited as the "reasonable accommodation for nonfunctional elevator act".
(a) "Authority" means the Michigan state housing development authority created under section 21 of the state housing development authority act of 1966, 1966 PA 346, MCL 125.1421.
(b) "Commission" means the civil rights commission established by section 29 of article V of the state constitution of 1963.
(c) "Common area" means a portion of a multifamily dwelling that is generally accessible to all occupants of the multifamily dwelling. Common area includes, but is not limited to, a community center, communal laundry room, mail room, public hall, recreational room, or stair hall.
(d) "Landlord" means any of the following:
(i) The owner, lessor, or sublessor of a multifamily dwelling.
(ii) A person authorized to manage the multifamily dwelling.
(iii) An individual who directly or indirectly acts as a rental agent, receives rent, other than as a bona fide purchaser, and who has no obligation to deliver the receipts to another person.
(e) "Multifamily dwelling" means a building that consists of 4 or more units if the building has 1 or more elevators.
(f) "Person with disabilities" means that term as defined in section 103 of the persons with disabilities civil rights act, 1976 PA 220, MCL 37.1103.
(i) Engaging volunteer groups or individuals to assist a tenant with mobility issues with purchasing and delivering groceries, running errands, or doing laundry.
(ii) Increasing the amount of time the landlord, building management, or maintenance staff stays on-site during work hours.
(iii) Paying for a hotel room for a tenant with ongoing medical needs and who requires appointments outside the home on an ongoing basis, if necessary.
(iv) Temporarily relocating tenants affected by an elevator that is not functional to a vacant unit in the ground floor of the multifamily dwelling, a hotel, or another unit in a multifamily dwelling owned or managed by the landlord, if necessary.
(h) "Tenant" means an individual who occupies a unit in a multifamily dwelling for residential purposes with the landlord's consent for an agreed consideration.
Sec. 3. (1) A landlord shall provide reasonable accommodation to the tenants if both of the following apply:
(a) Less than 50% of functional elevators in the multifamily dwelling are functional for more than 24 hours.
(b) The nonfunction of the elevators described in subdivision (a) may result in life threatening consequences to tenants in the multifamily dwelling.
(2) A landlord may obtain sufficient insurance to cover the costs of providing reasonable accommodation to the tenants.
Sec. 4. (1) Within 6 months after the effective date of this act, a landlord shall prepare a written plan that contains information regarding the reasonable accommodation the landlord will provide if less than 50% of functional elevators in the multifamily dwelling are functional. The written plan required under this subsection must include all of the following information:
(a) The list of the specific reasonable accommodations the landlord will provide to the tenants.
(b) A summary of how the reasonable accommodations will be provided.
(c) The name, telephone number, and email address of the landlord or person responsible for providing the reasonable accommodations on behalf of the landlord.
(2) The landlord shall use the standard form created by the authority pursuant to section 22e of the state housing development authority act of 1966, 1966 PA 346, MCL 125.1422e, to prepare the written plan required under subsection (1).
(3) A landlord shall do all of the following:
(a) Submit the written plan required under subsection (1) to the authority within 48 hours after preparing the written plan.
(b) Post a copy of the written plan in a common area at the premises.
(c) Provide a copy of the written plan to each tenant. A landlord that violates this subdivision may be ordered to pay a civil fine as provided in section 5(1)(a) or (b), whichever is applicable.
(4) The authority shall review the written plan submitted pursuant to subsection (3)(a) and approve or deny the written plan. If the written plan is denied for any reason not stated in subsection (5), the authority shall notify the landlord in writing of the denial and may request that the landlord submit a revised written plan within 30 days of the receipt of the written notice required under this subsection.
(5) If upon reviewing the written plan, the authority determines that the written plan may potentially exclude or otherwise discriminate against an individual in violation of the persons with disabilities civil rights act, 1976 PA 220, MCL 37.1101 to 37.1607, the authority shall forward the written plan to the commission.
Sec. 5. (1) If within 6 months after the effective date of this act a landlord does not prepare and submit a written plan as required under section 4, the commission shall notify the landlord in writing that a plan must be submitted within 30 days of the receipt of the written notice. A landlord that fails to submit a written plan after the expiration of the 30-day period may be ordered to pay a civil fine as follows:
(a) If the multifamily dwelling has 4 or fewer floors, not more than $500.00.
(b) If the multifamily dwelling has 5 or more floors, not more than $1,000.00.
(2) The civil fine assessed under subsection (1) must be increased by 10% every 30 days until the landlord complies with subsection (1).
(3) A violation of this act may be prosecuted by the prosecutor of the county in which the violation occurred or by the attorney general.
Enacting section 1. This act does not take effect unless Senate Bill No. 1144 of the 101st Legislature is enacted into
law.