City of Peoria

Legislation would hurt neighborhoods

It appears the City of Peoria is against some legislation snaking its way through the Illinois legislature.  Senate Bill 1727, the “Residential Inspection Ordinance Act,” passed the Illinois Senate on April 15 (Risinger voted yea, Shadid nay).  It has now gone to the House and has been referred to the Rules Committee.
 
Here’s a quote from an e-mail I have here from Randy Oliver (sent to Leslie McKnight, Neighborhood Development Specialist, and subsequently forwarded to Peoria homeowners associations) on why the city is opposed to this legislation:
This bill effectively shuts down all inspections of existing properties. The impact to local communities is life threatening and will decrease property values. Municipalities will have to get a court order to inspect property for building code violations if the owner does not permit them.

The lack of inspections will permit slum lords to continue to rent their properties to anyone with glaring violations. When properties are sold with violations, the new owners may br unknowing purchasers of problem properties.

When properties are not maintained values go down. I strongly urge all Neighborhoods to contact your representatives and strongly oppose this bill. If the bill passes however it may be time to considermobile homes for rent in las vegas as a more affordable option.

Those in favor of the bill include the Illiniois Rental Property Owners Association and the Illinois Association of Realtors (IAR).  According to the IAR’s March 18 edition of Quorum Call, this bill is in fact an IAR initiative, and they hope that it will establish “reasonable restrictions on pre-sale or pre-occupancy inspection requirements enacted by municipal ordinance.”  And in their April 18 edition, they claim, “This bill guarantees that the constitutional rights of property owners are protected and still permits municipal health and safety inspection ordinances to be enacted to ensure the protection of the housing stock and for the health and safety of the residents.”
 

However, if you read the text of the bill, you won’t find any exception for “health and safety inspection” as the IAR claims.  In fact, that’s why the Illinois Municipal League is also against SB1727.  Here are their reasons (from this link, accessed on 4/25/05):
SB 1727, an initiative of the Illinois Association of Realtors, will severely impact the quality of housing stock in municipalities and counties throughout the state. The bill specifically states that any local ordinance, law, rule or regulation calling for the inspection of residential property shall require the consent of the owner or occupant. If consent by either party is denied, an administrative warrant must be obtained. No municipality or county may hold up the sale of residential property on the basis that a required inspection has not been completed or that code violations have not been corrected. Home rule authority to deviate from these new restrictions on municipal power is expressly prohibited. This proposed legislation puts all residents, especially the low-income homebuyer and renter, at the mercy of unethical property owners, landlords and realtors.

Senate Bill 1727 will allow property owners to rent out substandard living spaces. These are frequently older single-family homes that have been converted illegally into multi-family apartments. In those instances, families may live in basements and attics that have only one way out in case of a fire. Some of the tenants living in these substandard conditions are not legal citizens – thus they do not report violations of the building code because they are afraid that they will get deported or their landlord will kick them out. The intent of municipal building codes is to protect everyone.

Senate Bill 1727 will assist landlords who make no effort to maintain their properties or flaunt health and life safety codes. Over time, such activities lead to decreasing property values and blight and in some instances may threaten the life of inhabitants. Instances of activities threatening inhabitants include removal of load bearing walls and elevated porches resulting in structural failure and collapse. Exemplary of inadequate maintenance is an incident in Cicero where improper and inadequate maintenance of tuck-pointing in a brick façade resulted in the collapse of the wall and the death of the tenant occupying the property.

Senate Bill 1727 will allow homebuyers in many communities, often low-income homebuyers, to buy property that does not meet minimum code standards.

Municipal inspection programs are designed to protect citizens, maintain housing stock, and prevent the development of unsafe and blighted properties. The inspections, and the process they follow, are guided by nationally developed maintenance codes for residential properties. This legislation, ostensibly introduced to address the problems in one community, will affect all communities throughout the state and the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens within those communities.

OTHER GROUPS OPPOSED:
City of Chicago, DuPage Mayors and Managers Conference, Metro Counties of Illinois, Northwest Municipal Conference, South Suburban Mayors and Managers, West Central Municipal Conference, Will County Governmental League, IL Fire Chiefs Association, IL Association of Fire Protection Districts, IL Fire Safety Alliance, IL Firefighters Association, IL Fire Inspectors Association, IL Fire Service Association, IL Code of Council Administrators, and the IL Plumbing Inspectors Association.

It looks to me like, while the people supporting this bill may have good intentions, the bill as it exists now is a bad bill, vulnerable to exploitation by slumlords and a nightmare for neighborhoods.  If you agree, let your representative know (you can find out who your representative is here).