It’s time to support SB1103 to protect small businesses and non-profit organizations

(1)Existing law requires a landlord of a residential dwelling to give notice to the tenant a certain number of days before the effective date of a rent increase depending on the amount of the increase, as specified.

This bill would apply this requirement to leases of commercial real property by a qualified commercial tenant, as defined. The bill would specify, in all leases for commercial real property by a qualified commercial tenant, that a rent increase would not be effective until the notice period required by these provisions has expired. The bill would also specify that a violation of these provisions would not entitle a qualified commercial tenant to civil penalties. The bill would require a landlord of a commercial real property to include information on these provisions in the notice.

(2)Existing law requires a person engaged in a trade or business who negotiates primarily in Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, or Korean, in the course of entering into specified agreements, to deliver to the other party a translation of the agreement in the language in which it was negotiated, as specified. Existing law authorizes a person to rescind an agreement if the agreement does not comply with that translation requirement, as specified. Existing law creates an exemption from the translation requirement for specified agreements if the other party negotiates the terms through the other partys own interpreter. Under existing law, both the translation requirement and the interpreter exemption apply to a tenancy agreement covering a dwelling unit normally occupied as a residence.

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This bill would apply the translation requirement, but not the interpreter exemption, to a tenancy agreement covering a nonresidential-zoned commercial space, and space entered into between a landlord and a qualified commercial tenant, as defined, on or after January 1, 2025. The bill would only authorize the tenant to rescind the agreement for noncompliance with the translation requirement.

(3)Existing law specifies that a hiring of residential real property, for a term not specified by the parties, is deemed to be renewed at the end of the term implied by law unless one of the parties gives written notice to the other of that partys intention to terminate the tenancy. Existing law requires an owner of a residential dwelling to give notice at least 60 days prior to the proposed date of termination, or at least 30 days prior to the proposed date of termination if a tenant or resident has resided in the dwelling for less than one year, as specified.

This bill would generally apply these provisions to a hiring of commercial real property hired by a qualified commercial tenant, as defined. The bill would require a landlord of a commercial real property to include information on these provisions in the notice.

(4)Existing law applicable to commercial leases and nonresidential tenancies of real property prohibits a landlord from demanding a payment as a condition of initiating, continuing, or renewing a lease or rental agreement, unless the amount of the payment is stated in a written lease or rental agreement. Existing law specifies that these provisions do not prohibit a landlord from increasing a tenants rent for nonresidential real property in order to recover building operating costs incurred on behalf of the tenant, if the right to rent, the method of calculating the increase, and the period of time covered by the increase is stated in the lease or rental agreement.

This bill would prohibit a landlord of a commercial real property from charging a qualified commercial tenant, as defined, a fee to recover building operating costs costs, as defined, unless specified conditions are met, including, among other things, that the costs are allocated proportionately per tenant and the qualified commercial tenant is provided supporting documentation before the rent increase, documentation, as specified. The bill would allow a qualified commercial tenant to raise a violation of this provision as an affirmative defense in an action to recover possession based on a failure to pay the fee. The bill would subject make a landlord of a commercial real property who violates this provision to a civil penalty, as specified, and would entitle a qualified commercial tenant to an award of costs reasonably incurred in connection with obtaining the civil penalty. liable to a qualified commercial tenant for specified damages, and would authorize the district attorney, city attorney, or county counsel, as specified, to seek injunctive relief. The bill would apply these provisions to specified leases and tenancies.