CITY OF SEATTLE
ORDINANCE __________________
COUNCIL BILL __________________
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AN ORDINANCE relating to the payment of relocation assistance to displaced tenants; establishing requirements for residential tenancies; establishing regulations about penalties and the issuance of building permits for violators of the Tenant Relocation Assistance Ordinance; amending Sections 7.24.030, 22.204.200, 22.210.030, 22.210.140, 22.210.150, and 22.210.180 of the Seattle Municipal Code (SMC); amending Section 106.6.3 of the 2012 Seattle Building Code; amending Section R105.6.3 of the 2012 Seattle Residential Code; and adding a new Section 22.210.136 to the SMC.
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WHEREAS, RCW 59.18.440 authorizes any municipal corporation required to develop a comprehensive plan under RCW 36.70A.040(1) to enact a program providing reasonable relocation assistance to tenants earning 50 percent or less of Area Median Income (AMI), upon the demolition, substantial rehabilitation, or change of use of residential property, or upon the removal of use restrictions in an assisted-housing development; and
WHEREAS, in 1990, The City of Seattle (City) passed the Tenant Relocation Assistance Ordinance (TRAO) because of the difficulty for low-income persons who are displaced by demolition, change of use, substantial rehabilitation, or removal of use restrictions from assisted housing to locate affordable substitute rental housing, and who also do not have sufficient time to save money for relocation costs or to find comparable housing when they are evicted as a result of such displacement; and
WHEREAS, since 2004, under the TRAO 1,325 low-income households have been assisted with relocation funds and time to move; and
WHEREAS, RCW 59.18.140 allows for a change in the amount of rent to become effective with thirty days written notice to each affected tenant upon completion of the term of the rental agreement; and
WHEREAS, TRAO does not provide for assistance or additional notice when tenan...
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