May 1, 2014, Introduced by Reps. Schor, Slavens, Barnett, LaVoy, Driskell, Irwin and Geiss and referred to the Committee on Regulatory Reform.
A bill to amend 1987 PA 96, entitled
"The mobile home commission act,"
by amending sections 2, 4, 7, 16, 17, 43, and 48 (MCL 125.2302,
125.2304, 125.2307, 125.2316, 125.2317, 125.2343, and 125.2348),
section 2 as amended by 2012 PA 588, sections 4, 16, and 17 as
amended by 2006 PA 328, section 7 as amended by 2009 PA 215, and
section 43 as added by 1988 PA 337, and by adding sections 48b and
48d.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 2. As used in this act:
(a) "Campground" means a campground as defined in section
12501 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.12501.
(b) "Code" means all or a part of the mobile home code
promulgated
pursuant to under section 5.
(c)
"Commission" means the mobile home code manufactured
housing commission.
(d) "Department" means the department of licensing and
regulatory
affairs, except that department as
follows:
(i) Department means the department of state in all of the
following circumstances:
(A) (i) As
used in section 5(1) with respect to rules
promulgated under section 5(1)(h).
(B) (ii) As
used in section 9(5) with respect to rules
adjusting fees under section 30a or 30c.
(C) (iii) As
used in sections 30 to 30i.
(ii) Department means the department of environmental quality
as used in this act with respect to powers and duties concerning
water supply systems and sewage collection and disposal systems for
mobile home parks and seasonal mobile home parks.
(e) "Installer and repairer" means a person, including a
mobile home dealer, who for compensation installs or repairs mobile
homes.
(f) "Local government" means a county or municipality.
(g)
"Mobile home" means a structure , that is transportable
in
1
or more sections, which is built on a chassis, and
designed to be
used as a dwelling, with or without permanent foundation, when
connected to the required utilities, and includes the plumbing,
heating, air-conditioning, and electrical systems contained in the
structure.
(h) "Mobile home dealer" means a person other than a
manufacturer engaged in the business of buying mobile homes for
resale, exchange, lease, or rent or offering mobile homes for sale,
lease, rent, or exchange to customers.
(i) "Mobile home park" means a parcel or tract of land under
the control of a person upon which 3 or more mobile homes are
located on a continual, nonrecreational basis and which is offered
to the public for that purpose regardless of whether a charge is
made therefor, together with any building, structure, enclosure,
street, equipment, or facility used or intended for use incident to
the occupancy of a mobile home.
(j) "Municipality" means a city, village, or township.
(k) "Person" means an individual, partnership, association,
trust, or corporation, or any other legal entity or combination of
legal entities.
(l) "Recreational vehicle" means a vehicle primarily designed
and used as temporary living quarters for recreational, camping, or
travel purposes, including a vehicle having its own motor power or
a vehicle mounted on or drawn by another vehicle.
(m) "Seasonal mobile home park" means a parcel or tract of
land under the control of a person upon which 3 or more mobile
homes are located on a continual or temporary basis but occupied on
a temporary basis only, and which is offered to the public for that
purpose regardless of whether a charge is made therefor, together
with any building, enclosure, street, equipment, or facility used
or intended for use incident to the occupancy of a mobile home.
Seasonal mobile home park does not include a campground licensed
pursuant to sections 12501 to 12516 of the public health code, 1978
PA 368, MCL 333.12501 to 333.12516.
(n) "Secured party" means that term as defined in section 9102
of the uniform commercial code, 1962 PA 174, MCL 440.9102.
(o) "Security interest" means that term as defined in section
1201 of the uniform commercial code, 1962 PA 174, MCL 440.1201.
(p) "Technical bulletin" means a document issued by the
department to promote uniform interpretation and enforcement of
this act and rules promulgated under this act. A rule promulgated
or order issued under this act is not a technical bulletin.
(q) (p)
"Termination statement"
means that term as defined in
section 9102 of the uniform commercial code, 1962 PA 174, MCL
440.9102.
Sec. 4. (1) The commission may do all of the following:
(a) After consultation with and considering comments from
representatives of the manufactured housing industry and other
interested parties, recommend rules to the department to implement
and administer this act.
(b) Act for the purpose of establishing a uniform policy
relating to all phases of mobile home businesses, mobile home
parks, and seasonal mobile home parks.
(c)
Determine the sufficiency of local mobile home ordinances
which
are designed to provide local governments with superintending
control
over mobile home businesses, mobile home parks, or seasonal
mobile
homes parks.
(c) (d)
Conduct public hearings relating to
the powers
prescribed in this subsection.
(2) The director or an authorized representative of the
director shall do all of the following:
(a) After consultation with and considering comments from
representatives of the manufactured housing industry and other
interested parties, promulgate rules to implement and administer
this act.
(b) Conduct hearings relating to violations of this act or
rules promulgated under this act.
(c) Make investigations to determine compliance with this act
and rules promulgated under this act.
(d) Provide assistance to the commission as the commission
requires.
(e)
On not less than a quarterly basis, the director or an
authorized
representative of the director shall report
to the
commission on the expenditure of all fees collected under this act
and the relation of such expenditures to the enforcement and
administration of this act.
(f) Prepare a detailed written explanation of the powers and
duties of local governments with respect to mobile home parks,
seasonal mobile home parks, and mobile homes and post and maintain
the document on the department's website.
(g) Post and maintain on the department's website all current
technical bulletins.
(h) Promptly notify a local government of the issuance,
amendment, or rescission of a technical bulletin if the department
has knowledge that a mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park
is located in, or an application has been filed for the licensure
of a park proposed to be located in, the local government. The
notice shall be sent by first-class mail or electronic mail to each
of the following:
(i) The clerk of the local government.
(ii) The chief executive officer of the local government.
(iii) The enforcing agency for the local government if, under
section 8a or 8b of the Stille-DeRossett-Hale single state
construction code act, 1972 PA 230, MCL 125.1508a and 125.1508b,
the local government has assumed responsibility for the
administration and enforcement within its jurisdiction of that act
and the state construction code or a part of the state construction
code of limited application.
(i) If the department receives a complaint about a mobile home
park or seasonal mobile home park, promptly notify each local
government in which the park is located of the details of the
complaint.
(3)
The commission shall not act for the purpose of regulating
regulate mobile homes that are not located within a mobile home
park or a seasonal mobile home park, except as relates to the
business, sales, and service practices of mobile home dealers and
the business practices of mobile home installers and repairers.
Sec. 7. (1) Except as provided in subsection (7),
a local
government
that proposes a standard related to mobile home parks or
seasonal
mobile home parks, or related to mobile homes located
within
a mobile home park or a seasonal mobile home park, that is
higher
than the standard provided in this act or the code, or that
proposes
a standard related to the business, sales, and service
practices
of mobile home dealers, or the business of mobile home
installers
and repairers, that is higher than the standard provided
in
this act or the code, shall file the proposed standard with the
commission.
Except as provided in subsection (7), the commission
may
promulgate rules to establish the criteria and procedure for
implementation
of higher standards by a local government. The
commission
shall review and approve the proposed standard unless
the
standard is unreasonable, arbitrary, or not in the public
interest.
If the commission does not approve or disapprove the
proposed
standard within 60 days after it is filed with the
commission,
the standard shall be considered approved unless the
local
government grants the commission additional time to consider
the
standard. After the proposed standard is approved, the local
government
may adopt the standard by ordinance. The ordinance shall
relate
to a specific section of the code.
(2)
A local government standard related to mobile homes not
located
within a mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park need
not
be filed with the mobile home commission, unless the standard
relates
to the business, sales, and service practices of mobile
home
dealers, or the business of mobile home installers and
repairers.
(1) (3)
A local government ordinance shall
not be designed as
exclusionary
to exclude mobile homes
generally, whether the mobile
homes are located inside or outside of mobile home parks or
seasonal mobile home parks.
(2) (4)
A local government ordinance shall
not contain a
standard for the setup or installation of mobile homes that is
incompatible with, or is more stringent than, either of the
following:
(a) The manufacturer's recommended setup and installation
specifications.
(b) The mobile home setup and installation standards
promulgated by the federal department of housing and urban
development pursuant to the national manufactured housing
construction and safety standards act of 1974, 42 USC 5401 to 5426.
(3) (5)
In the absence of any setup or
installation
specifications or standards for foundations as set forth in
subsection
(4)(a) (2)(a) or (b), the local government standards for
site-built
housing shall apply.
(4) (6)
A local government ordinance shall
not contain roof
configuration standards or special use zoning requirements that
apply
only to, or excludes, exclude,
mobile homes. A local
government
ordinance shall not contain a manufacturing or
construction
standard that is incompatible with, or is more
stringent
than, a standard promulgated by the federal department of
housing
and urban development pursuant to the national manufactured
housing
construction and safety standards act of 1974, 42 USC 5401
to
5426. A local government ordinance may include reasonable
standards
relating to mobile homes located outside of mobile home
parks
or seasonal mobile home parks which ensure that mobile homes
compare
aesthetically to site-built housing located or allowed in
the
same residential zone.
(5) (7)
Notwithstanding anything in section
17, that may be to
the
contrary, a local government may
adopt an ordinance to inspect
provide
for inspection at mobile homes for
safety, within whether
the
mobile homes are located within or outside a mobile home park ,
a
or seasonal mobile home park. ,
or mobile homes located outside a
mobile
home park or a seasonal mobile home park if the mobile home
being
inspected is If the
inspection program is limited to mobile
homes
being rented to a tenant by the owner
of the mobile home, .
The
the local government may propose a means to determine
which
mobile homes located within its jurisdiction are being rented to
tenants
a tenant by the owner, including, but not limited to,
imposition of a registration or a licensing requirement for renting
a
mobile homes home to
tenants. a tenant. A local government may
inspect
a mobile homes home rented to tenants a tenant by
the owner
for safety if the safety inspection ordinance applies to all other
rental
housing within the local governmental unit. government. If a
local
government inspects mobile homes rented to tenants by the
owner
for safety, the period between
inspections shall not be less
than 3 years unless the local government is responding to a
complaint from a tenant. An inspection shall not be conducted on a
mobile home for which an occupancy permit has been issued by the
local government in the preceding 3 years unless the local
government
is responding to a complaint from a tenant. Inspections
for
safety The local government shall not require enforcement of
any mobile home construction standards that are greater than those
applicable to the mobile home under the national manufactured
housing construction and safety standards act of 1974, 42 USC 5401
to 5426, or standards or codes to which the mobile home was
constructed if it was constructed before application of the
national manufactured housing construction and safety standards act
of
1974, 42 USC 5401 to 5426. As used in this section, "inspection
for
safety" means an inspection of a rental mobile home that is An
inspection for safety under this section shall be limited to
ensuring the proper functioning, or protection, of the following:
(a) Furnace.
(b) Water heater.
(c) Electrical wiring.
(d)
Proper sanitation Sanitation
and plumbing.
(e) Ventilation.
(f) Heating equipment.
(g) Structural integrity.
(h) Smoke alarms.
Sec. 16. (1) A person shall not operate a mobile home park or
seasonal mobile home park without a license. The term of a license
is 3 years. The department shall issue a license only if all of the
following requirements are met:
(a) The applicant submits a complete license application.
(b) Certifications and recommendations of appropriate agencies
and local governments are submitted to and approved by the
department.
(c) The applicant provides financial assurance as described
under subsection (2).
(d) The applicant pays the fee set forth in subsection (3).
(e) The mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park was
approved after its most recent inspection under section 17.
(2)
Upon completion, review, and approval of certifications,
the
department shall grant a license to operate a mobile home park
or
seasonal mobile home park.
(2) The financial assurance required under subsection (1)
shall be in the form of a certificate of deposit, cash, certified
check, irrevocable bank letter of credit, or surety bond acceptable
to the department and shall cover the estimated cost of maintenance
and repairs to the mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park
over the next 3 years. An operator who elects to use a certificate
of deposit as bond shall receive any accrued interest on that
certificate of deposit upon release of the bond by the department.
An operator who elects to post cash as a bond shall earn interest
on the bond. The interest shall accrue quarterly at the same rate
as interest on the state common cash fund. Interest shall be paid
to the operator upon release of the bond by the department. To the
extent that interest earnings exceed the rate set forth in this
subsection, the excess interest shall be deposited in the mobile
home code fund created in section 9.
(3)
A 3-year license shall be granted and renewed by the
department
based upon the certifications and recommendations of the
appropriate
agencies and local governments. The
fee for the 3-year
a license to operate a mobile home park is $225.00, plus an
additional $3.00 for each home site in excess of 25 home sites in
the mobile home park, or any lesser amount established pursuant to
section
9(5). The fee for a 3-year license to operate a seasonal
mobile home park is $120.00, plus an additional $1.50 for each home
site in excess of 25 home sites in the seasonal mobile home park,
or any lesser amount established pursuant to section 9(5).
(4) If a person submits a timely application for renewal of a
license and pays the appropriate fee, the person may continue to
operate a mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park unless
notified that the application for renewal is not approved.
(5) A campground which is currently licensed under sections
12501 to 12516 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL
333.12501 to 333.12516, and was previously licensed under the
former licensing provisions of 1959 PA 243, MCL 125.1035 to
125.1043, as a
seasonal trailer park and which currently meets the
seasonal
trailer park construction standards under 1959 PA 243, MCL
125.1035
to 125.1043, may apply for and
shall be licensed as a
seasonal mobile home park under this act if the campground meets
all other requirements for licensure under this act as a seasonal
mobile home park.
Sec.
17. (1) The department of environmental quality or its
authorized
representative shall conduct a an
annual physical
inspection of mobile home parks and seasonal mobile home parks in
accordance
with standards established by the department. of
environmental
quality. If the mobile home park or seasonal mobile
home
park is approved, the department shall issue a license
pursuant
to section 16.The department
shall prepare a report
documenting the findings of the inspection and submit a copy of the
report to each local government in which the mobile home park or
seasonal mobile home park is located.
(2) Except for purposes of issuing a license or renewing a
license
pursuant to this act, a local government may not make an
inspection
unless it shall not inspect a
mobile home park or
seasonal mobile home park unless any of the following apply:
(a) The local unit has reason to believe that this act, the
code, or rules promulgated pursuant to this act were violated.
(b) The department failed to perform an annual inspection
under subsection (1) and the inspection has not been performed by
another local government. The local government may charge the
operator of the mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park a fee
to cover the actual reasonable cost of performing an inspection or
may recover the cost from the department.
Sec. 43. (1) If, after notice and a hearing as provided in the
administrative
procedures act of 1969, Act No. 306 of the Public
Acts
of 1969, being sections 24.201 to 24.328 of the Michigan
Compiled
Laws, 1969 PA 306, MCL 24.201
to 24.328, a person is
determined to have violated this act, the commission may impose 1
or more of the following penalties:
(a) Censure.
(b) Probation.
(c)
Placement of a limitation on a license.License limitation.
(d)
Suspension of a license. License
suspension. The
commission may request the appointment of a receiver when taking
action under this subdivision.
(e)
Revocation of a license. License
revocation. The
commission may request the appointment of a receiver when taking
action under this subdivision.
(f)
Denial of a license.License
denial.
(g) A civil fine of not more than $10,000.00.
(h)
A requirement that restitution be made.Restitution.
(2) A fine collected under this section shall be deposited
with
the state treasurer and credited to the mobile home commission
code fund created in section 9.
(3) If the department determines that the operator of a mobile
home park or seasonal mobile home park has violated this part or
rules promulgated under this part by failing to maintain or repair
any infrastructure or facilities of the mobile home park or
seasonal mobile home park, the department shall give notice of the
determination by personal service or first-class mail to the local
governments where the mobile home park is located, the owner, the
operator, and, if the financial assurance under section 16(2) is in
the form of a bond, the surety executing the bond. If the owner,
operator, and surety fail to perform the specified maintenance and
repair within 60 days after service of the notice, the department
may enter the mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park and
perform the specified maintenance and repair, and the owner,
operator, and any surety are jointly and severally liable for all
expenses incurred. The department shall certify the claim to the
owner, operator, and any surety, listing in the claim the items of
expense in performing the maintenance or repair, and shall draw on
the financial assurance for the payment of the claim. The
department shall notify the local government where the mobile home
park is located when the specified maintenance and repairs have
been completed.
(4) (3)
This section does not prohibit
actions being taken
under other sections of this act.
(5) (4)
The pursuit in court of the lawful
rights of a
licensee does not constitute a violation of this act, regardless of
the outcome of the court action.
Sec.
48. (1) Subject to section 49, Act No. 419 of the Public
Acts
of 1976, being sections 125.1101 to 125.1147 of the Michigan
Compiled
Laws, is repealed.
If a local government issues
to the
operator of a mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park a
notice of violation of an ordinance related to mobile home parks or
seasonal mobile home parks and the operator fails to comply with
the order contained in the notice of violation, the local
government may bring an action to enforce the ordinance and to
abate or enjoin the violation.
(2) If the violation is uncorrected and endangers the health
and safety of the occupants of the mobile home park or seasonal
mobile home park, or if there are no occupants and the violation
endangers the health and safety of the public, the local government
shall file a motion for a preliminary injunction or other temporary
relief appropriate to remove the danger during the pendency of the
action.
(3) The local government shall serve a copy of the complaint
and a summons on each owner and lienholder of record that can be
identified by the local government with the exercise of reasonable
diligence. The local government shall also file a notice of the
pendency of the action with the register of deeds for the county
where the mobile home park or seasonal mobile home park is located.
(4) The court shall make orders and determinations consistent
with the objectives of the ordinance. The court may enjoin the
maintenance of an unsafe, unhealthy, or unsanitary condition, or a
violation of the ordinance, and may order the defendant to perform
maintenance and repairs or make other corrections including removal
of a building or structure necessary to abate the condition. The
court may authorize the local government to perform maintenance or
repairs or to remove a building or structure owned or operated by
the owner or operator of the mobile home park or seasonal mobile
home park. However, the court shall not authorize removal of a
building or structure unless the cost of repair of the building or
structure will be greater than the state equalized value of the
building or structure.
(5) If the expense of maintenance, repair, or removal is not
otherwise provided for, the court may enter an order approving the
expense and placing a lien on the real property for the payment of
the expense. The order may establish the lien as a senior lien,
except as to tax and assessment liens, and except as to a recorded
mortgage of first priority, recorded prior to all other liens of
record. The order may also specify the time and manner for
foreclosure of the lien if the lien is not satisfied. To perfect
the lien, a copy of the order shall be filed with the register of
deeds for the county where the mobile home park or seasonal mobile
home park is located within 10 days after entry of the order.
Sec. 48b. (1) The local health department may file an
emergency petition with the circuit court to place a mobile home
park or seasonal mobile home park under the control of a receiver.
The court may grant the petition if the court finds that the health
or safety of the residents of the park would be seriously
threatened if a condition existing at the time the petition was
filed is permitted to continue.
(2) If the court appoints a receiver, the receiver shall be
the director of the department of human services, the director of
the department of community health, the director of the local
health department or his or her designee, or another state agency
or person designated by the director of the department of community
health. The receiver shall use the income and assets of the mobile
home park or seasonal mobile home park to maintain and operate the
park and to attempt to correct the conditions that constitute a
threat to the health or safety of residents.
(3) If requested by the receiver, the department of community
health shall provide available personnel to consult with the
receiver on the fulfillment of the receiver's duties.
(4) The receivership shall be terminated when the receiver and
the court certify that the conditions that prompted the appointment
have been corrected or, if the mobile home park or seasonal mobile
home park ceases operation, when the residents are safely placed in
other housing, whichever occurs first.
(5) Upon termination of the receivership, the receiver shall
render a complete accounting to the court.
Sec. 48d. If the condition of a mobile home park or seasonal
mobile home park is an imminent danger to the health or lives of
individuals, the local health department may issue an order under
section 2451 of the public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.2451,
including, but not limited to, an order requiring the mobile home
park or seasonal mobile home park to cease operation or prohibiting
the presence of individuals at all or part of the park because of
the condition of the park.