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1. HEAT BY-LAW UPDATE MISE À JOUR DU RÈGLEMENT MUNICIPAL SUR LE CHAUFFAGE |
Committee Recommendation
That Council approve
the proposed by-law attached as Document 1, effective upon enactment, which
extends City-wide the requirement that landlords provide adequate and suitable
heat to rented or leased dwelling or living accommodations.
Recommandation DU Comité
Que le Conseil approuve le
règlement municipal proposé se trouvant en annexe au document 1 et entrant en
vigueur dès son adoption, qui élargit à toute la ville l’obligation des
propriétaires de fournir du chauffage adéquat et approprié dans les logements
ou locaux d’habitation mis en location.
Documentation
1. Deputy City Manager's report, City
Operations dated 3 June 2010 (ACS2010-COS-EPS-0026).
Community and Protective Services Committee
Comité des services
communautaires et de protection
and Council / et au
Conseil
Submitted by/Soumis par : Steve Kanellakos,
Deputy City Manager/
Directeur municipal
adjoint, City Operations/Opérations municipales
Contact Person/Personne ressource :
Linda Anderson, Chief / Chef
By-law and Regulatory Services /
Services des règlements municipaux
(613) 580-2424 x29257,
Linda.Anderson@ottawa.ca
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Ref N°: ACS2010-COS-EPS-0026 |
SUBJECT:
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OBJET :
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Que le Comité des
services communautaires et de protection recommande au Conseil d’approuver le
règlement municipal proposé se trouvant en annexe au document 1 et entrant en
vigueur dès son adoption, qui élargit à toute la ville l’obligation des
propriétaires de fournir du chauffage adéquat et approprié dans les logements
ou locaux d’habitation mis en location.
Under the Municipal Act, 2001, Ontario municipalities are granted the authority to enact by-laws for the health, safety and well-being of persons, which would include by-laws respecting the maintenance of adequate and suitable heat for rented or leased dwelling or living accommodations.
Currently, stand-alone by-laws requiring the provision of adequate and suitable heat are in place in former Gloucester, Kanata, Nepean and Ottawa. The provisions of each of the by-laws are in fact identical and included the following requirements:
Every landlord of a building or part of a building which is rented or leased as dwelling or living accommodation and which, as between the tenant or lessee and the landlord, is normally heated by or at the expense of the landlord shall maintain at all times adequate and suitable heat therein.
“Adequate and suitable heat” means between 11:00 p.m. of any day and 6:00 a.m. of the next following day an air temperature in the centre of each reasonably ventilated room of not less than 16.67 degrees Celsius (62 degrees Fahrenheit) and between 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. of any day an air temperature in the centre of each reasonably ventilated room of not less than 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit).
Enforcement staff immediately investigates requests for service with respect to inadequate heat in rented/leased dwellings in the aforementioned areas of the city by confirming the temperature in the dwelling and, if it does not meet the requirements of the by-law, then a Notice of Violation is issued to the landlord/property owner, with a request to remedy the situation within the timeframe specified in the notice. The timeframe specified on the Notice is dependent on the weather conditions at the time of the Service Request and the investigation, but is generally brief to ensure that heat is restored for tenant health and safety reasons. If there is a failure to comply, By-law & Regulatory Services has the authority to remedy the situation and invoice the landlord or property owner on the tax roll, much like the manner in which other property standards-type violations are handled in the event of non-compliance with a notice.
Outside of the areas of former Gloucester, Kanata, Nepean and Ottawa, in which the aforementioned by-law provisions exist, Service Requests related to inadequate heat have to date been addressed under the Property Standards By-law which has similar minimum heat requirements.
Although the Property Standards By-law provides for heat requirements similar to those in the existing by-laws, because it has been enacted under different authority, the Building Code Act, 1992, a minimum of fourteen days must be provided for compliance and an appeal mechanism is in place, as required by the enabling legislation. These factors make enforcement action problematic and cumbersome particularly in light of the urgent nature of the matter to be addressed. The Property Standards By-law also provides for emergency orders, but those must be confirmed before a Justice of the Peace after the remedial work has already been done by the City and there is always a risk that a particular order will not be confirmed, resulting in the costs being borne by the City, and hence the taxpayer, as opposed to the landlord. The decision of a Justice of the Peace in these cases cannot be appealed.
In light of the foregoing and with the increasing numbers of living accommodations available for rent or lease outside of former Gloucester, Kanata, Nepean and Ottawa, staff recommends that it would be reasonable and prudent to enact a city-wide by-law similar to the existing by-laws.
In essence, there would be no change to the rules applicable to areas outside of those covered by the existing by-laws, only a change in the process in which inadequate heat issues are addressed, which would not impact negatively on affected residents.
There are no specific rural implications associated with the contents of this report. Persons residing in rental accommodations available in rural areas are entitled to the same level of protection as renters in urban/suburban areas.
Given the administrative nature of this report and that the proposals will not negatively impact property owners – and will benefit tenants – extensive public consultation was not necessary or undertaken. Notification of the Community and Protective Services Committee meeting at which the item would be considered was provided in the local dailies. Further, a notice outlining the recommendation and rationale for same was circulated for information to the Business Advisory Committee, Health and Social Services Advisory Committee, Eastern Ontario Landlord Organization, Ottawa Region Landlords Association, Building Owners and Managers Association, Ottawa Community Housing, and Social Housing Registry for information.
There are no legal/risk management impediments associated with the recommendation.
This report has no direct impact on the City Strategic Directions.
There are no technological implications associated with the recommendation.
There are no direct financial implications associated with the recommendation as the costs, if any, are included in the current budget for By-law and Regulatory Services. No incremental costs are anticipated.
Document 1 – Draft Heat By-law (Immediately follows the report)
If the recommendation is approved, By-law & Regulatory Services, in consultation with Legal Services, to process the by-law to Council for enactment
DOCUMENT 1
BY-LAW NO. 2010 -
A by-law of the City of Ottawa respecting the maintenance of adequate heat in rented dwelling accommodations.
The Council of the City of Ottawa enacts as follows:
DEFINITIONS
1. In this by-law:
“adequate and suitable heat” means between 11:00 p.m. of any day and 6:00 a.m. of the next following day an air temperature in the centre of each reasonably ventilated room of not less than 16.67 degrees Celsius (62 degrees Fahrenheit) and between 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m. of any day an air temperature in the centre of each reasonably ventilated room of not less than 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit);
“Chief” means the Chief of By-law
and Regulatory Services in the Emergency and Protective Services Department of
the City of Ottawa or his or her designate;
“landlord” means the property owner,
or property manager, or any person designated by the registered property owner
as the person responsible for maintaining adequate and suitable heat in the
dwelling or living accommodation.
INTERPRETATION
2. (1) The rules in this section apply to this
by-law, unless a contrary intention is evident from
the context.
(2) Unless otherwise defined, the words and phrases used in this by-law have their normal and ordinary meaning.
(3) This by-law is gender-neutral and, accordingly, any reference to one gender includes the other.
(4) Words in the singular include the plural and words in the plural include the singular.
(5) It is declared that if any section, subsection or part thereof is declared by any Court of Law to be bad, illegal or ultra vires, such section, subsection part or parts shall be deemed to be severable and all parts hereof are declared to be separate and independent and enacted as such.
(6) Headings are inserted for convenience only, form no part of this by-law and shall not affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of the provisions of this by-law.
ADEQUATE AND SUITABLE HEAT TO BE MAINTAINED
3. No landlord of a building or part of a building which is rented or leased as dwelling or living accommodation and which, as between the tenant or lessee and the landlord, is normally heated by or at the expense of the landlord, shall fail to maintain at all times adequate and suitable heat therein.
NOTICE TO COMPLY
4. When a landlord fails to maintain at all times adequate and suitable heat pursuant to Section 3, the Chief shall issue to the landlord of the building or part of a building which is rented or leased as dwelling or living accommodation and which, as between the tenant or lessee and the landlord, is normally heated by or at the expense of the landlord, a written Notice requiring the landlord to maintain at all times adequate and suitable heat therein and specifying the time allowed for compliance.
5. The Notice shall be served to the landlord:
(a) personally;
(b) by prepaid registered mail to the landlord’s last known address, in which case it shall be deemed to have been given on the third day after it was mailed; or,
(c) by posting the Notice in a prominent position on the exterior of the dwelling or living accommodation.
FAILURE TO COMPLY
6. No person shall fail to comply with a Notice given under Section 4 of this by-law.
7. If the landlord fails to comply with a Notice, the Chief may enter upon the property at any reasonable time for the purposes of carrying out the work described in the Notice.
8. Costs incurred by the City in performing the required work pursuant to the Notice may be recovered by action or by adding the costs to the tax roll and collecting them in the same manner as property taxes.
OFFENCES AND PENALTIES
9. (1) Every person who contravenes any of the provisions of this by-law is guilty of an offence.
(2) Every
person who is convicted of an offence under this by-law is liable to a fine as
provided for in the Provincial Offences Act, R.S.O 1990, Chapter P. 33, as
amended.
10. When
a person has been convicted of an offence under this by-law,
(a) the Ontario Court of Justice, or
(b) any court of competent jurisdiction thereafter,
may, in addition to any other penalty imposed
on the person convicted, make an order prohibiting the continuation or
repetition of the offence by the person convicted.
REPEALS
(b) By-law No. 239-86 of the Corporation of
the City of Kanata being a By-law of the Corporation of the City of Kanata
requiring the maintenance of adequate and suitable heat for rented or leased
dwelling or living accommodation;
(c) Paragraphs (4), (11) and (17) of Section
1.2, Section 2.5, Section 6.1, Section 6.2 and Section 6.3 of By-law No. 69-94
of the Corporation of the City of Nepean cited as the Property Standards
By-law, as amended;
SHORT TITLE
12. This by-law may be referred to as the “Heat By-law”.
ENACTED AND PASSED this day of , 2010
CITY CLERK MAYOR