Appointments Committee - Regular Meeting

Okay. I'd like to call to order the City of Tacoma Community Vitality and Safety Committee meeting of July 23rd, 2026. And I'd like to first off do the roll call. Council Member Palmer? Here. Vice Chair Scott?

Here.

She's here.

Here, I don't know if you can hear me.

Yeah, I can hear you.

Oh, okay.

I'm from Riverwalkers, absent . Here, all right. Hey, clerk, is anyone here to speak, is signed up online?

No, and I'm .

Okay, if anyone's interested in public comment, they should raise their hand now. Okay, looks like, so we'll close public comment, and we'll start with, we have two things on the agenda for today. And then we have our, what's coming up. But the first thing is the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities interviews. And I'd like to call on our city clerk, Nicole Emery.

Sorry, I froze for a second. Good afternoon. My name is Nicole Emery, your city clerk. And today you'll be interviewing five applicants for the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities. And you'll also review the applications of four commissioners who are seeking reappointment. At this time, staff requests the committee consider those reappointments based on their prior experience and their updated applications in your packet. In total, there are currently five positions available on the commission for you to review today, including four for the positions that are seeking reappointment. Additionally, there is an emerging leader position that will remain vacant as we had no qualified applicants. And for each interview, Each member will provide a two-minute presentation, and it will include answers to the following questions. Number one, why do you want to serve on the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities? And number two, what unique ability, skill set, or perspective would you bring if selected? After each presentation, you may ask additional questions, and then after interviews have concluded, you may make motions to submit to the poll council. And you should have Lucas, I believe, in the room with you. And I'm happy to answer any questions before we get started.

Okay. Thanks, Nicole. So I was hoping that we could do the reappointments first and then kind of get those moved out of the way. And then we'll see that we have five applicants for the one leftover position, as well as there's an opportunity to do somebody for the shortlist in case there becomes a vacancy. Is that correct?

Yep, that's correct.

Okay. So I am going to go ahead and I'm going to, going to ask for some motions, if that's possible. And I'm gonna ask from Council Member Palmer, because she's in the room. Okay, here we go.

I move to recommend the reappointment of Sherry Coleman to the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities to serve a three-year term effective September 1st, 2026 to expire August 31st, 2029.

Second.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Okay, that's approved.

I move to recommend the reacquaintment of Haley Eddick to the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities to serve a three-year term effective September 1st, 2026 to expire August 31st, 2029.

Second.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Okay, that passes.

I move to recommend the reacquaintment of Tony Heschner. to the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities to serve a three-year term effective September 1st, 2026 to expire August 31st, 2029.

Second. All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye. Aye. That's passed. I move to recommend the reappointment of Billy Perriman to the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities to serve a three-year term effective September 1st, 2026 to expire August 31st, 2029.

Second. All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Okay, that passes. I want to thank everyone for taking care of that exercise. These people were picked for reappointment because they had done a wonderful job in their first three years and we allow two terms of three years on this commission. And I always talk with staff and we ask about attendance and participation. And this commission in particular has really high participation rates. So I wanted to say thank you so much to my council members for that exercise. And so now we'll move on to the one opening we have for a position as well as the extra one for if there's a vacancy in the next little while.

Wonderful. Thank you, Chair Rumbaugh. We will start with Amanda, and we'll get them over right now. Hi, is it Amanda? It is. Hello. Hi, Amanda. Welcome to the Community Vitality and Safety Committee. I'm going to pass you to Chair Rumba to begin your interview. Okay.

I'm Amanda. I'm Council Member Rumbaugh, and we'll be interviewing you for a position on the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities. And I know you received two questions ahead of time. We're going to give you two minutes to answer those questions that we provided, and then we're going to take up to three minutes for follow-up questions. So whenever you start talking is when the clock will start.

Okay. Hi. Um, I, uh, want to serve on the commission of disabilities, um, because I've been supporting people, um, with disabilities for 18 years, 12 of those years, I have had a master's level in, uh, behavior analysis, and I've had the opportunity to work with people as young as toddlers up through their geriatric years, um, in clinics homes. workplaces, schools, the community. Through the experience, I've seen programs that can meaningfully improve people's lives while also seeing some things that create additional barriers. And I think that with my experience in these different environments, I have the skillset and the knowledge to kind of bridge some of those gaps. I think that... You know, I've seen very small changes make huge difference and, you know, small and thoughtful, you know, policies that can have huge effects on people's independence, their dignity, their ability to participate in the community. I think that I have a pretty broad perspective, also being that I am a Tacoma business owner, I can understand both the needs of the individuals who are seeking services, seeking accessibility, as well as some of the challenges that organizations might face trying to implement those things. I know that, you know, I can help by listening to community members, identifying barriers, collaborating with stakeholders, connecting with voters on things that might help everyone in the community and, you know, be inclusive to those with disabilities. I'd approach this position, you know, listening to people with disabilities, sharing their experiences and, you know, try to, a commitment to make, to come a more accessible, responsive and inclusive community.

Thank you, Amanda. I appreciate that. Thanks for your answers. Okay, I'm going to open it up to questions from my fellow council members. First off, Council Member Scott, do you have any questions?

I don't. Thank you.

Okay, thank you. Council Member Palmer, do you have a question? I do.

I'm torn. I guess I could have two questions. I feel like I need to cover for Council Member Walker. Are you going to ask me?

It doesn't matter. You can ask me.

Go ahead. It's so funny. I was going to ask you to do that question. So Council Member Walker, who's not here right now, normally asks about group dynamics. This is a position that you're in a room with folks that are coming from all different sorts of backgrounds and that, and have their own opinions. And so wanting to know kind of how you would work with others and if there's ever a situation where you had to kind of work through something difficult in a group setting.

Yeah. You know, I, I have worked with, there are a lot of egos when it comes to master's level people with, with, you know, in, in this, In this environment, I've had opportunities to work with other people with certain letters after their name, doctors and SLPs, OTs, all of these other people, we all have different perspectives on how things can be done. And I think that we all have an opportunity to learn from each other. So maybe I have a different perspective than somebody and we can use our shared experiences, our different experiences to come together and basically learn from each other, basically, you know, come to some common ground where I don't, I know that I have not, you know, experienced everything in the world. And I think that having the opportunity to work with others who share different experiences really does help learn and, and, you know, working through some difficulties I've had to use all kinds of, um, you know, styles getting through to people who maybe don't get along as well, trying to, you know, conflict resolution type situations where we can see, we can agree to disagree or, you know, come to some middle ground somewhere.

Thank you for that. Now, my other question was just about, you know, a lot of disabilities, there's some that are seen and some that are unseen. How do we make sure that maybe folks from both of those groups are heard in the decisions in this group?

Um, I, most of my experience is with people who have intellectual disabilities and, um, developmental disabilities. So those, those are more the unseen ones, right? Uh, basically I think having conversations with people and really understanding where they're coming from, we might not even be able to see some physical disabilities that might be a barrier to somebody accessing some, uh, services. So I think that really listening to people is the main, uh, the best way to, to get any sort of perspective on these things.

Thank you. Okay. Thank you, Amanda. Um, I really appreciate you interviewing for this position. We have a few more interviews and then when we get done with those, we will be discussing in an open forum, um, about everybody and then making a decision and you should be hearing back from the clerk in the next few days on who we picked and I want you to know that I know that there will be other openings and there are only probably two openings today but I want you to know that I really appreciate your interest and I hope that we see you again all right sounds good thank you you're welcome

Here, Rumba, we're going to go slightly out of order from on your page. The next available is Maya. You may have lost Maya. We're working to track her down in the virtual space here.

That sounds so funny. We lost her. Oh, my gosh.

It's weird moving from one room to the other room, but they're . Hi, Maya. Can you hear us?

Yes, I can hear you. Thank you.

Welcome to the Community Vitality and Safety Committee. I'm going to pass you to Chair Rumba to begin your interview.

All righty. Thank you so much.

Hi, Maya. This is Sarah Rumba. the chair of the community vitality and safety committee. And you're interviewing for a position with our Tacoma area commission on disabilities. And we've sent a couple of questions ahead of time. We're going to give you two minutes on the clock to answer those questions. And then when you're done, we'll take up to three minutes to ask you some questions. So as soon as you start talking, we will go ahead and start the clock.

All righty. Thank you so much. I would like to serve on the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities as someone who's currently pursuing my Master of Public Administration at Evergreen and having a long-term career goal. to launch in the ADA disability and accessibility space. This summer, I'm also currently pursuing my ADA coordinator certification, and I just really see this opportunity as a meaningful way to deepen my understanding of the real needs of the community. I want to be in a position where I'm not just learning about accessibility in theory, but actively engaging and contributing in a way that allows me to be of service to the community in Tacoma. I would bring a combination of grassroots experience, systems awareness, and a strong commitment to equity and accountability. Through my work in advocacy, case management, program coordination, I've really developed the ability to navigate some difficult systems, support individuals through challenges, understanding their rights, and identifying gaps in access. Most importantly, I bring a willingness to listen, learn, and really uplift the voices of those impacted and a commitment to disability advocacy that reflects the diversity of the community being served here in Tacoma. Thank you.

All right. Thank you, Maya. Thank you so much for your answers. I'm going to ask Council Member Scott if she has a question first.

I do not. Thank you.

Okay, great. I'm going to let you go first with your question, and then I'll ask.

Okay. Thank you for that. I see this is the only commission that you applied for, so I'm curious how you feel It sounds like you're early in your career when it comes to the disability space. And I'm curious why you chose this particular committee. And then also, how do we ensure that folks with disabilities seen and unseen are getting something out of this committee, getting what they need out of this committee?

So to answer the first part of your question, I am early in my career as far as disability. I have worked more in education spaces surrounding special education and supporting that in a K-12 system. So I would say that that kind of helped me lean into understanding disability different barriers that families were experiencing in real time in a grassroots way and kind of being a bridge that leaned into people in positions of leadership to kind of get some understanding. I think that I can help support people with disabilities seen and on scene receive the services needed by first listening. People usually know exactly what they need. They just don't know how to access it. So for me, that's usually how I try to support. I like to ask questions. I like to know in an ideal world, what would a solution for you look like? And If we can name five things, if we can get three of those five, that's still 60% out of 100. And I'd like to think that that's better than where we started. And we continue to work for more as time and as resources and, you know, the processes and procedures that already exist allow.

Thank you.

Thank you.

All right. So I have the question that Council Member Walker usually asks, but she's not here today. She usually asks the question about this is like, you know, this is working in a group and how what is your dynamic in a group and how do you handle conflict when it comes up when we have different types of opinions?

I usually enjoy working in a group. I'm usually someone that likes to kind of sit back and listen, take notes, and kind of like lean in when it's decision making time. As far as like conflict goes, I think everyone's opinion is valid. Everyone's opinion is needed. And I think that Everyone here is here for the same purpose, which is to serve the community and create greater access. So I think that sometimes conflict can help us get to a place of resolution. And I think that it sometimes helps people better strategize because all points are valid. This conflict and contention is existing for a reason. And a part of us resolving it is going to impact how people receive services. So I do think it's necessary to overcome and to really lean into to get to the root of resolution and, you know, impacting real world in real time. Great.

Thank you so much, Maya. We really appreciate you taking the time to interview today. And we have a few more interviews to do. And we'll be then discussing in an open forum about the different applicants. And we'll be making our decision today. We have two openings, one for a regular position and one for if we have a vacancy. And I just want to say thank you so much for interviewing. After today, you'll be hearing back from our city clerk. Again, thank you so much for your interest in the city of Tacoma. We really appreciate what it means that you showed up today.

Thank you all so much for your time and you all have a good rest of your evening.

Bye-bye. We have reached the time in which the other applicants should have arrived and we have not had any others join the other virtual space.

All right, so we are going to just make our decision then because if you didn't show up, too bad, it's too late. And I want to say that we appreciate people's interest and things do come up. So if you hear from them at another time, I'm sure you'll remind them that we'll have other openings. Thank you so much. This is the time where we're going to discuss the two applicants. I'd love to hear from the other council members their thoughts. I'm going to ask you first, because you're in the room, Council Member Palmer, what are you thinking? Talk to me a little bit.

They both seem like really great applicants. I did appreciate a Amanda's kind of history in this space with her work history, but also I'm looking at kind of the makeup of the existing group. And I'm noticing, you know, Maya would bring a fresh perspective and she's kind of on the younger side of the folks that would be in the group. And so that in itself is a kind of diversity of thought. And it sounds like the fact that this is the only group commission that they applied for, like they're really interested in this particular commission. And so I would probably lean towards Maya.

Okay. Council Member Scott, what are your thoughts?

I had similar thoughts, just in that they're both strong candidates, and I think that they both have a lot to bring to the commission. And so I'm happy to support either moving forward, but I'm glad that we have that space open for somebody to be kind of held in the queue for when there is another opening, because it'd be great to have them both on there.

Thank you for what you had to say. I, too, agree with both of you. I want to say what I really appreciated is that they both, they didn't openly have a disability that they mentioned, but I appreciated their space in the disability discussion and that they are working towards what it means to serve people that might be experiencing. One of them actually does the job. The other one's looking at doing something like that. I want to say that really if I had to, the difference is I thought they were both really strong candidates. I really felt like Maya's answer was, to how she understands conflict to be actually a positive to making decisions. I really appreciated that because I could see there being friction points in this commission on topics that come up because they're all strong people who serve on this commission. And so I think that Maya is my first choice for the open seat. And I would love to suggest that Amanda would be a great one for if there becomes an opening in the near future. So if there's a motion that I can ask Councilmember Palmer to make, that would be great.

Okay, I move to recommend the appointment of Maya Ramos to the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities to fill an unexpired term to expire, oh, I get it, to expire August 31, 2027. followed by a three-year term to expire August 31, 2030. Thank you.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye. Okay. Opposed? There are no opposed. And so that motion carries. And thank you so much for that. All right. To the next one? Yeah. Okay.

I move to recommend Amanda Harris as the first person on the short list for the Tacoma Area Commission on Disabilities. which will be effective until the next applicant recruitment period opens.

Second.

All those in favor signify by saying aye.

Aye.

Opposed? All right. Motion carries. So thank you. That's so easy. So I just want to thank everyone. I'm going to thank Lucas for your hard work. I mean, I do pass you ahead of time about the different applicants. We had such great applicants. So I'm hoping that the other people show up in some other venue and we get to get to interview them and meet them. So thank you so much, Lucas.

Thank you.

All right. So we are going to move on to the next part of our agenda. And I want to thank my counsel for all of their good work in moving us forward.

Okay.

All right, Sarah. All right. Our next topic is the Rental Housing Code and Landlord Fairness Code Compliance and Enforcement Overview. This is just informational. And we have Sarah Ridgeford, the Interim Housing Division Manager here today. And she, I'm going to let you go ahead and start your presentation.

Thank you, Chair Rumbaugh, Vice Chair Scott, and Commissioner Becker. All right. I'm the interim housing division manager with neighborhood and community services. I want to recognize Chiqueta Alder, who is our landlord tenant coordinator, and she is our subject matter expert. And unfortunately due to some unexpected circumstances, she's not able to be here today. So I am going to present on her behalf and I just appreciate the time and effort that she put into preparing for tonight. This will likely affect how we handle questions. We'll collect some questions, given the limits of housing and community services. And me, in this position, I think I should encourage our experts and give you responses after. Next slide. And for our agenda, we will cover three primary areas. First, the codes that govern rental housing in Tacoma. Second, an overview of the landlord-tenant program and its functions. And then third, the enforcement properties and penalties that are applicable under the city's statutory . Next slide. Multiple Tacoma, that's very small, I apologize for that. Multiple Tacoma municipal code chapters and state RCWs set or affect standards in landlord and tenant roles and protections. However, for rental properties within Tacoma City limits, compliance is required under the Rental Housing Code and the Landlord Fairness Code Initiative. While these codes do not replace the RLTA, which is that rental landlord, I'm spacing on my title, and it gives me time. Thank you. Acronyms, problematic, but it doesn't replace that, but they are more restricted in certain areas, so that's better later. The Rental Housing Code, which is Tacoma Municipal Code Title I, Chapter 95, was adopted by Ordinance 28559 in 2019 and amended in 2023. The purpose of the RHC is to establish regulations supporting the topic of increasing housing security and to establish standards and enforcement mechanisms as they relate to rental housing in Tacoma. It addresses elements of rental housing, such as tenant screening, rental agreements, notices, late fees, and evictions. The Landlord Fairness Code Initiative, or LFCI, was established by ballot initiative taking effect in 2023, with recent amendments taking effect in 2026. It addresses rent increases, evictions, fees, and notices. The Washington State Residential Landlord Tenant Act establishes statewide rights and responsibilities and remedies for renters and property owners. Under the RLTA, tenants may request inspections for safety or habitability issues. Locally, these issues fall within our minimum building and structures code, and that is TMC 2.01. This protects public health, safety, and welfare through established standards for maintenance, equipment, and life safety features of buildings in Tacoma, including residential, Next slide. I will review the Landlord Tenant Program, which was established in 2008 as part of the Tacoma Save and Clean Initiative. The Landlord Tenant Program is a community partnership between landlords, tenants, and the city to create thriving communities. This is done by providing both landlords and tenants with the tools needed to sustain safe and healthy rental housing. The Landlord-Tenant Program does this in four ways, which are on the right of your screen. They do this by providing information and referrals, education, outreach, coordinating with code compliance to conduct landlord-tenant code inspections as it relates to habitability issues and possible code violations, and since implementing the Rental Housing Code. The program is responsible for enforcement of violations related to the RAP. So I'm going to use language that Chiqueta prepared recently, which is our department. Largely, I'm going to be speaking to the work that Chiqueta and her counterpart, Raquel, do every day in this program. So we'll outline the authority of the landlord-tenant program, what it does and cannot do. The landlord-tenant program provides the following services. These are going to be on the left-hand side. provides information as it relates to the Washington State Residential Landlord-Tenant Act, the Tacoma Rental Housing Code, and the Landlord Fairness Code Initiative to assist both landlords and tenants understand their rights and responsibilities and how to advocate for themselves. The Landlord-Tenant Program provides referrals to organizations that provide legal assistance, such as Tacoma Group Pro Bono for legal advice for low-income tenants into the Tacoma Pierce County Bar Association lawyer referral for landlords and tenants who are not low income so that they can obtain information on obtaining legal representation. The program provides referrals to other resources to assist with issues such as rental assistance and or finding housing. The program assists tenants with exercising the remedy under the RLTA, which allows them to request a code enforcement of the rental unit. In an effort to keep the community aware of the rights and responsibilities, we also provide education and outreach. And last but not least, we enforce violations of RHC. The Landlord-Tenant Program does not have the authority to enforce violations of the RLTA or the LFSCIS, the Landlord Fairness Code Initiative. Nor can we provide legal advice or legal representation. We also cannot inspect parental property without being on the property legally, The three ways that we can legally be on the property are with the owner's permission, a court order, or if the tenant who has followed all the required steps under the RLTA, that's state law, requests an inspection. Next slide, please. I'm going to continue to use acronyms just for ease at this point, but the RLTA and the LFCI do not have and enforcement mechanism that allows the city to enforce violations and private civil action must be used. However, the city can enforce violations of the RHC or the rental housing code and the building code. The city can only enforce violations on properties that are within the Tacoma city limits. So even if it has a Tacoma address, if it's outside of the city limits, we can't enforce violation, but the program does provide information. Additionally, there must be a landlord-tenant relationship, which includes a verbal or written agreement and rent required. Next slide, please. I'll walk you through the process in which the city receives and processes complaints as it relates to the Rental Housing Code, the RLTA, and the LFCI, as well as the building code. While most of the complaints are received through the 311 system, the process in which the complaints are handled will differ So we'll start with the process for a violation of the Rental Housing Code. And all enforcement-related cases start with an intake. And during that intake, we gather information to help us assess what the issue is. Then we provide the tenant with information on the rights and responsibilities under the law in which they believe there is violation. The tenant is informed that under good faith requirements under the RLTA, They may want to dispute the violation in writing and ask the landlord to rescind the action that they have taken to take back a notice or stop retaliate against them. Once the tenant has requested that the city convince enforcement action, the city will contact the landlord via phone or email and discuss the possible violations that have occurred. If during this conversation, the landlord states they do not believe they are in violation, and they have proof, the landlord will be asked to provide that proof to the landlord tenant program. If during the conversation it is found that the landlord may have violated the rental housing code, they're asked to come into voluntary compliance and advised on the steps that they can take to do so. Once the landlord has agreed to come into voluntary compliance, the landlord is provided follow-up with an outline of the violation and the steps to come into compliance. And the number of days varies that they're provided based on the violation, but it will include the number of days necessary for that compliance to occur. And that, again, is based on the nature of the violation. If a landlord comes into voluntary compliance within the required time frame, the case is considered closed and no further action is taken. If they have not, then there will be a notice of voluntary compliance, so just escalating to that next level where the landlord is provided the opportunity to come into voluntary compliance. Again, before further enforcement measures are taken. If they do not comply with the voluntary compliance notice, they are issued an official notice of violation and or civil penalties, depending on the nature of the violation. The notice of violation will outline the steps required to come into compliance and explains the rights of the landlord to dispute the violation. If the landlord does not agree with the notice of violation, they can request a director's review. And if they do not agree with the director's decision, they can file a formal hearing with the hearing examiner. I'll move on to that middle section. It actually would have been really great. I could have said next slide. But in this case, we'll stick with this slide. And in that middle section, the RLTA and the LFCI are addressed And in this case, the city does not have the authority to enforce violations as there's not an enforcement mechanism that allows us to do so. During the intake, we gather information to assess what the issue is and provide the tenant with the information of their rights and responsibilities under the law in which they believe there is a violation. This will sound familiar. Some of this is very similar to the rental housing code in terms of how that intake works. We explain the limits on the action that the city can take regarding violations and explain that they must take private civil action for a remedy. The tenant is also informed that if they want to dispute the possible violation in writing, asking the landlord to come into compliance with the law, that they may do so. The tenant is informed that it would be best to serve this written dispute in a way that it can be proved that the landlord received it, such as personal delivery with a signature or certified mail. and the tenant is provided with referral to seek private legal counsel. The last code that we will review is TMC 2.01. That's on the right. This is our building code. While the city has the right to enforce violations of the building code, for what we're talking about tonight, we're going to follow the process and requirements of the RLTA, which requires the tenant to give the landlord the opportunity to address the issue before requesting that the city commence enforcement action. So in... This case, once that has been confirmed, they would request that inspection, provide documentation that they have requested it under RLTA, and these inspections are then known as the landlord-tenant code enforcement inspection cases because they're initiated through the landlord-tenant program. The tenant contacts the office, provides the documentation, they would open, that's Not quite right. So the staff would then ensure that the rental property is considered private property and the city cannot enter the rental property to inspect it without first meeting the three legal requirements. They have to be granted the owner's permission, have an order from the judge, or that the tenant has followed all of the RLTA provisions. The tenant is informed that based on the outcomes of the inspection, they may be required to rotate the unit if it's found to be uninhabitable. The tenant is also informed that under the RLTA, if a property is deemed unhabitable by code enforcement, the RLTA and the RHC require the landlord provide relocation assistance to the displaced tenant. Since the RLTA does not have an enforcement mechanism, the tenant would have to take private civil action to recover the funds that the landlord does not comply. This information is provided to the tenant so they're prepared to make a judgment as to whether they could sustain themselves and their families. The tenant has also informed that once the code enforcement inspection cases opened with code compliance, anything related to the case is now subject to the process and procedures of that department as it relates to the enforcement, which includes the communication about the case, the notice of violation, civil penalties, and then compliance, and the process to dispute the violations, which include a director's review and a hearing examiner's review. Next slide, please. This will be an overview of the two violation and penalty structures of violations with the code. Again, this pertains only to the rental housing code. The first is a flat fee structure for civil penalties. And the violations associated with this type of violation are as follows. And I'll give First, a little bit of information on the fees. You'll see that the landlord is subject to a civil penalty in the amount of $500 for the first violation and $1,000 for each subsequent violation within a three-year period. And then the sections that we're going to be talking about where the flat fee applies are as follows. We have section 30, which is around distribution of information requiring landlords provide tenants with information on how to find out about code violations property, providing the renting and Tacoma booklet, and providing notice of resources with any notice served that can lead to eviction. Additionally, it has provisions around the tenant requesting to pay moving costs in installment. Section 40 is around deposit requirements and installment payments, which requires landlords to allow tenants to pay moving costs in installments. Section 50 is notice requirement generally, And this requires that landlords review and comply with all reasonable accommodation requests. Section 60 is a notice to increase rent. This requires landlords provide the tenant with at least 180 days written notice to increase rent and use the city required form. Section 65 on late fees prohibits the landlord from charging more than 1.5% of unpaid monthly rent and requires the landlord provide a written statement at least quarterly. of the late fees and how the tenant can come into compliance. The second fee structure is the per day civil penalty. And under the per day civil penalty structure, the landlord is subject to civil penalties in the amount of $250 per day for the first 10 days of noncompliance and $500 per day for each day beyond 10 days of noncompliance until compliance is achieved. These violations are per violation, per dwelling unit, and they begin on the first day of noncompliance. And this is true if they violate the following section, section 80, tenant relocation assistance, which requires the landlord to pay relocation assistance to tenants due to the rental unit being demolished, substantially rehabilitated, or change of use. Section 90 is retaliation prohibited. This prohibits the landlord from retaliating against a tenant because the tenant exercised their rights under the RLTA or the RHC. Section, I should have said that was Section 98.2. 8.4 is illegal rental agreement provisions, which prohibit the landlord from having illegal provisions in their rental agreement, as outlined in the RLTA. Section 37, rental agreement regulations. This requires certain provisions and prohibits others within the rental agreement. I'm not going to go through those in detail. And then section 35 is tenant screening. The set standards around tenant screening pertaining to social security numbers, criminal history policy, and income to rent ratio. And then section 85 is shared housing, setting standards of how shared housing should be handled as it relates to rental agreements, occupancy standards, habitable space. We have the, the city of Chippewa has the authority to defuse civil penalties for the rental housing code. The main goal is always to get into voluntary compliance, and that is consistent with what we shared about the process and the amount of steps taken for that voluntary compliance. The program does that through partnership, partnership both with landlords and tenants. And next slide, please. Typically, we would take questions. We will take your questions, and I will ask for some grace as we take those questions and response later on.

Okay, thank you so much, Sarah. Okay, so I'm just going to open the floor for questions from the council members. First, I'll start with Councilman Palmer. Thank you.

As you know, this is an interesting subject for me. I've gone through a couple of different meetings with staff to kind of get the run through of what happens in this situation, what happens in that situation. And throughout that, you know, it's become clear that there's a lot of areas for opportunity. One of the main areas of opportunity that came up a lot was the training and education side of the Landlord-Tenant Program. And so when we're talking about referrals and handing out the booklets and Um, it seems like folks that I've talked to are still pretty unclear as to like what their role is, um, in re in reporting violations of their tenants, um, probably landlords as well. Um, and what the city's role is. And so my first question, I guess, is, is there plans to update some of that education material? Um, and if there is, uh, our, our council member. Those suggestions welcome. And then the other question I, this was new to.

I think it's safe to say that in a case like this, materials are reviewed regularly and definitely look at materials as they're up to date with the department. If you have specifics that you want to share, welcome those as we develop. and would take them into consideration.

Thank you. I'll save you my notes. Great. Yeah, so first I heard of renting a Tacoma booklet. Is that a physical booklet or is that online?

I believe it's mostly going to be an electronic that landlords are providing. No, that's a physical with lease or an electronic.

It's by law. A landlord is supposed to give it out in paper. And it's just the code. It's the rental housing, like what their rules are, what their rights are. And you're supposed to give it to them. And then you need to make sure they have read it. I always make people sign it that they've read it, but they are supposed to have a copy. And most renters will say, I really appreciate the paper copy. Can you send me it in an email? So I have it so I can find it. So that's what they're talking about. I think that's what you're referencing.

Okay.

And I will follow up on that. And it has to be in a language that they can understand. There are some other provisions. And it's also for every single tenant. So if you have 300 units, every single person needs to get it. I think it's really important. And I think as a landlord, you should be going through in every part with it to the people so they know what it says. So, I mean, I always ask people, I ask them questions after they've read it. did you read the part about the part where you can like how much time i'm supposed to give you there's the landlord supposed to give you for you before you can move out like understanding what it means when your lease ends yeah but just knowing what your rights are and i think that that's that education part is really important yeah that's helpful for everyone um i'd love to see that if i can get a copy of one of those um and on the violations and penalties um

This was news to me that it kind of varies depending on the violation. How is that determined whether it's like a flat fee versus the per day penalty?

That's established in code and I would have to confirm any details on that.

So it's just kind of like a choice as these came up, whether, or do you know if there was any reason behind?

I did not work with that time.

Yeah. Um, I'd be curious to know, I guess why, why, why they might be under one or the other. Um, if there's a way that we can determine that. Um, yeah, I just, I do have lots of notes in these things. And so as we kind of go through and do the work to update, I'd love to participate and stay as active as possible.

Great questions. Um, council member Scott, do you have any questions for Sarah?

No, no questions. The question I had was actually already answered, so I appreciate that, and I just want to thank you, Sarah, for giving us the briefing. Thanks, Chair.

Okay, so I'm just going to say that the part that's confusing to me is I understand the RTLA, which is the state's one that they put forward, and the Landlord Fairness Code Initiative, that we don't enforce those. But the part that's difficult and hard for people to understand is in the rental housing code. When is it considered something that we would go after the landlord about? So I think like that's the issue is like, is it tier one, tier two, tier three? I mean, that's ridiculous that we're supposed to make sure the blinds are clean on someone's place. That is a ridiculous thing. But things like mildew. like mildew is like we know is a health hazard for many people. That's something that we should actually, I wanna know like what that looks like. Is there a time, I know you have timelines, but it's like, if it doesn't fit the bucket, then it doesn't make sense for them to reach out. And so I'm trying to, when I asked before about this, for this to come forward, that's really my question. And I think the part that is the education part is when should I reach out to the city about an issue? I mean, if I'm a renter and they bring me a notice that says I have to pay this extra money in 10 days, where is it that says that they can do that? And how do I reach out to the city? And how do I fill out a complaint? I think there's like basic education parts that are sort of not clear to people. And it's also not clear if you're someone living where that your landlord didn't give you an actual Like you don't actually have a lease. And then understanding that, guess what? They actually can't, they are actually in violation that they didn't get a lease to you. And if they don't have a business license, that's another part, right? So I just, I think there's a lot of, there's a lot of parts to this and I'd love to be able to make it simple sound bites for people for simple issues that happen over and over again. I think like you should be able to go to the website. I would love to make it easier for people for simple things like, I have these issues like mildew in my water running like a leak. Just the simple things to know. What are the most common things that we get 311 complaints about or people reaching out to the rental housing division about? I actually think that those things, I mean, I've just, I've been, mulling over this for a while. Those are the kinds of things I think if we could just make it easier for people when they're looking for information, if we just know what the most common questions are for people, so we can answer those right away. That's sort of what I think would be helpful. I also had this education idea where Councilmember Scott could be involved in it, but where we made these TikTok videos on different simple issues and we put them out there. and you should maybe do them too, Council Member Palmer, but where somebody asks a question and then we answer it. But I think that there's got to be other inexpensive ways that we can get information out to people that they need to know. And I just think we have a young rental community. And I feel like some of this, I wish it was addressed in the schools. If you're in the city of Tacoma School District, going out and telling people about what it's like to be a renter, because we know that over 50% of people are renting, you know, working with our schools to figure out how could we get something out to people? So they learn about what a lease looks like and here's the rental housing code and you should know about this. And, but those are just not things I think about all the time. So, so I want to thank you so much, Sarah, for your time today.

Go ahead. You kind of triggered something else for me with the, you know, the tiers of the violations. I think that was something else that came up in our conversations. What is it felt, feels like, you know, landlords should have maybe more time for some of these non-life threatening things to come into compliance. And then, but maybe less time when there's mildew or something, if they don't come into compliance within, you know, I think it's right, is it 90 days right now? Maybe that should be a little bit less because those are healthy. uh, impactful issues. And so, um, I think that that's something else to look at. Okay.

All right. Thank you so much. All right. So the next part, well, this is, I can't believe we're going to be out of here in the hour. Um, topics for upcoming meetings, I'd like to call on, um, Tony Esperanza. I'm going to say it wrong, Esparza.

Esparza. Esparza.

I'm really close.

No problem at all. Thank you so much. Yes. Coming up on the August 13th meeting, we have two report outs from the Tacoma Community Redevelopment Authority and also from the Community's Police Advisory Committee. We also have a new addition to that agenda. We'll be hearing about the Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan for the city and its updates. from the Office of Emergency Management in Tacoma Fire. And then our next meeting on the 27th of August is quite packed with report outs from three groups, the Human Services Commission, the Human Rights Commission, and the Commission on Immigrant and Refugee Affairs giving their annual reports. And then on the September 10th meeting, you're going to be doing some interviews for seats on the Human Services Commission. And then we will be hearing about our neighborhood councils with their annual report.

All right, thank you so much. All right, and so with that, can I get, oh, has anyone been to a meeting, a commission of the Community Vitality and Safety Committee? Has anyone been to anything?

I went to the last CPAC meeting. They had an update on the budget from the city manager as well as the police chief and were able to just ask some questions about different ways in which they're thinking about the budget and potentially how CPAC can chime in on that.

All right. Thank you so much, Council Member Scott. Hopefully you'll be participating when CPAC comes in some part of the conversation yeah i'm happy to share we'd love that thank you so much all right with that can i get the last motion i motion to adjourn yeah second okay motion passes and we will see you next time thank you thank you