CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
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AN ORDINANCE relating to residential rent payments; requiring receipts and non-electronic payment options; and amending Section 7.24.030 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
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WHEREAS, the rental relationship between landlords and tenants requires clear communication and documentation of transactions, including payment of rent; and
WHEREAS, in September 2018, the Seattle Women’s Commission and the King County Bar Association jointly published Losing Home: The Human Cost of Eviction in Seattle, finding that families who are evicted face material hardships that make it more difficult to secure safe and affordable housing and that the most disadvantaged groups face the highest likelihood of eviction; and
WHEREAS, disputes about rent payment are one cause of eviction proceedings; and
WHEREAS, requirements for payment of rent through electronic banking can place a burden and cost on tenants; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Section 7.24.030 of the Seattle Municipal Code, last amended by Ordinance 125558, is amended as follows:
7.24.030 Rental agreement requirements
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E. Any rental agreement entered into after ((the effective date of the ordinance introduced as Council Bill 118817)) January 15, 2017 shall describe the terms and conditions of any monthly or periodic payments required as a condition of tenancy, including but not limited to: rent, security deposits, non-refundable move-in fee, last month's rent, utility payments, parking fees, late fees authorized by the rental agreement, or other monthly or periodic payments required to be made by the tenant to the landlord. When any monthly or periodic payment is made pursuant to the rental agreement, the landlord shall first apply the payment to the rent due before applying it to other payments due by the tenant to the landlord, except that if the payment is made in response to a notice issued pursuant to RCW 59.12.030 during the period of that notice, the landlord shall first apply the payment to the amount specified in that notice, before applying it to the rent due or to other payments due by the tenant to the landlord. The landlord shall:
1. Provide a receipt for any payment made by a tenant in the form of cash.
2. Provide, upon the request of a tenant, a written receipt for any payments made by the tenant in a form other than cash.
3. Provide the option for payment of housing costs and other costs and fees by cash, check, or other means that do not require electronic banking.
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Section 2. If any section or subsection of the Seattle Municipal Code affected by this ordinance is amended by ordinance without reference to amendments made by this ordinance, each ordinance shall be given effect to the extent that the amendments do not conflict in purpose, and the code reviser may publish the section or subsection in the official code with all amendments incorporated therein.
Section 3. This ordinance shall take effect and be in force 30 days after its approval by the Mayor, but if not approved and returned by the Mayor within ten days after presentation, it shall take effect as provided by Seattle Municipal Code Section 1.04.020.
Passed by the City Council the ________ day of _________________________, 2019, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its passage this _____ day of _________________________, 2019.
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President ____________ of the City Council
Approved by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2019.
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Jenny A. Durkan, Mayor
Filed by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2019.
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Monica Martinez Simmons, City Clerk
(Seal)