AB 1771

AB1771:v98#DOCUMENT

Bill Start

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1771

An act to add and repeal Section 17921.2 to of the Health and Safety Code, relating to housing.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1771, as amended, Alvarez. State Housing Law: apartment houses.

Existing law, the State Housing Law, establishes statewide building standards relating to occupancy, use, and maintenance of hotels, motels, lodging houses, apartment houses, and dwellings, and authorizes the Department of Housing and Community Development to adopt rules and regulations for this purpose. Pursuant to that authority, existing law requires a manager or other responsible person to reside upon the premises and have charge of every apartment house in which there are 16 or more apartments, as specified.

This bill would prohibit a state or local entity from requiring a manager or other caretaker to reside upon the premises of an apartment house and would require the department to update its regulations, as specified.

The bill would include findings that changes proposed by this bill address a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair and, therefore, apply to all cities, including charter cities.

This bill would require the department to analyze the efficacy of the above-described manager residence requirement and to submit a report to the Legislature with recommendations on whether to maintain, modify, or repeal the requirement no later than January 1, 2029, as specified. The bill would require the department to engage and solicit feedback from specified stakeholders for this purpose. The bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2031.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:(a) Section 42 of Title 25 of the California Code of Regulations, adopted by the Department of Housing and Community Development, provides that certain residential properties and hotels must have a caretaker that resides on the premises.(b) The Department of Housing and Community Development plays a critical role in ensuring the health and safety of all Californians in their homes. It also plays a critical role in advancing the state’s goals of ensuring housing is safe and habitable, preserving existing rental housing, and increasing the supply of newly constructed housing affordable to all households.(c) It is a goal of the Legislature to ensure that adopted statutes and regulations continue to meet the needs of all Californians and help advance the state’s housing goals.

SECTION 1.SEC. 2.

Section 17921.2 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

17921.2.

(a)A state or local entity shall not require a manager or other caretaker to reside upon the premises of an apartment house.

(b)The department shall update its regulations as may be necessary to comply with this section.

(c)The Legislature finds and declares that this section addresses a matter of statewide concern rather than a municipal affair as that term is used in Section 5 of Article XI of the California Constitution. Therefore, this section applies to all cities, including charter cities.

17921.2. (a) No later than January 1, 2029, the department shall develop and submit to the Legislature a report that analyzes the efficacy of Section 42 of Title 25 of the California Code of Regulations and provide recommendations on whether to maintain, modify, or repeal the regulation. The analysis and recommendations shall consider all of the following factors:(1) The extent to which the regulation advances each of the following goals:(A) Ensuring renters live in safe, accessible, and habitable housing.(B) Ensuring renters are able to make timely rental payments.(C) Ensuring compliance with state and local laws, including those governing habitability of structures, provision and maintenance of common area lighting and security, fire safety, and similar laws.(2) The extent to which the repeal of the regulation would impact both of the following:(A) Disaster and emergency preparedness and response.(B) The housing stability and employment status of current resident managers.(3) The anticipated fiscal impacts of repealing the regulation on state and local governments, including increased costs associated with code enforcement, habitability compliance, or tenant protections.(4) Input from stakeholders gathered pursuant to subdivision (b).(b) In developing the report specified in subdivision (a), the department shall engage and solicit feedback from stakeholders regarding the continued efficacy of Section 42 of Title 25 of the California Code of Regulations. Stakeholders shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:(1) Residents of rental housing.(2) Owners of rental housing.(3) Organizations representing the interests of renters.(4) Organizations representing the interests of owners or managers of rental housing.(5) Local governments.(c) (1) A report to be submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) shall be submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.(2) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this section is repealed on January 1, 2031.