Calif. State Senator Introduces Bill to Block Rent Online Only Landlord Scheme

After reading CES’ E-Newsletters regarding our efforts to organize tenants in 34 apartment complexes owned by Jones and Jone Management Company

Tenants Organized by CES at Woodlake Manor apartments in the Crenshaw District Fighting Rent Online Rent Payment Landlord Scheme.

throughout L.A. to oppose their landlords demands for their rent to only be paid online, California State Senator Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) responded by taking decisive action against this abuse. Senator Lieu has just introduced Senate Bill (SB) 1055 that would require landlord to continue to accept rent by check or money order.

Here are the links to the emails that prompted Senator Lieu to take this important action:

 CES Fights New Landlord Scheme Demanding Online Rent Payment

CES Fight Escalates Against New Landlord Eviction Scheme

Contact Your State Senator and State Assembly Member to urge their support for SB 1055.

Below is a news release from Senator Lieu announcing the introduction of his bill SB 1055.

Sen. Lieu introduces bill to block landlords from requiring tenants to pay rent only online
February 22, 2012

Complaints from residents prompt renter-protection bill

SACRAMENTO – In response to complaints from residents that more and more landlords are requiring rental payments be made only online, Sen. Ted W. Lieu today announced introduction of a bill that would ensure residents can continuing paying with check or money order.

“A growing number of landlords are no longer accepting checks or money orders from tenants,” Lieu, D-Torrance, said about Senate Bill 1055. “Instead, they have begun to change rental agreements to require tenants – including the elderly, disabled and poor – to pay their rent online.”

The issue came to light late in 2011 when hundreds of tenants in apartment complexes in Los Angeles objected when the property-management group notified residents of a 300-unit complex that the only way they could soon pay rent was online.

Current law does not specify how rent is to be paid. SB 1055 revises the law to prohibit landlords from requiring online only rental payments.

“Many residents of the rent-controlled complexes are elderly, live on fixed incomes and either have no computer or know little about computers,” Lieu said, adding that it was unreasonable to ask renters who may be struggling to make ends meet to invest in a computer, Internet access and related expenses in order to rent a residence.

“We applaud Sen. Ted Lieu for introducing this important tenants’-rights legislation to protect renters,” Larry Gross, executive director of the Los Angeles-based Coalition for Economic Survival said. “We believe this rent-online scheme is just another way to increase rent-controlled rents by evicting long-term, low-rent tenants who just happen to be, for the most part, seniors and the disabled. In other words, this affects those who likely are least able to pay online.”

SB 1055 is waiting to be assigned to a policy committee for review, which should occur within the next month.

For more, here’s a Fact Sheet on SB 1055.

Ted W. Lieu chairs the Senate Labor Committee and represents nearly 1 million residents of Senate District 28, which includes the cities of Carson, El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, Lomita, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach and Torrance, as well as portions of Long Beach, Los Angeles and San Pedro. For more, visit www.senate.ca.gov/lieu