HB4758 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 15383 AJO 50574 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB4758

Introduced 01/17/06, by Rep. William Davis

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Residential Tenant Protection Act. Makes findings, states purposes, and provides definitions of terms. Prohibits residential lock-outs. Describes actions that do not constitute a residential lock-out. Makes a violation a petty offense punishable by a fine of not more than $500 nor less than $200. Also authorizes injunctive relief and damages. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT in relation to property.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Residential Tenant Protection Act.

Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds and declares the following:

(1) The Forcible Entry and Detainer provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure provide a legal method to remove tenants from a dwelling unit, if the tenant has failed to live up to the terms of the rental agreement.

(2) The Illinois State Constitution states in Article I, Section 2, that "No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law nor be denied the equal protection of the laws."

(3) Residential lock-outs are a form of illegal eviction that runs contrary to the legislative intent of the Forcible Entry and Detainer provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure and to the intent of the Illinois State Constitution and forces families out of their homes with virtually no advance notice or warning.

(4) Over 50% of the tenant-occupied housing in the State is protected by municipal ordinances that restrict lock-outs, however municipalities that are not home rule units are unable to enact ordinances of that type.

(5) Despite current statutory and constitutional prohibitions, residential lock-outs occur at an alarmingly frequent rate, with one in 7 low-income tenants outside the City of Chicago experiencing a residential lock-out at some time in his or her life.

(6) Residential lock-outs are a major cause of homelessness for Illinois families.

(7) Current Illinois law fails to empower local police to act to protect tenants when made aware of a residential lock-out.

(8) Residential lock-outs take many forms that were not fully anticipated in the Forcible Entry and Detainer provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure, including utility shut-offs and threats of violence.

(9) A threat of a residential lock-out made to a tenant makes the tenant's dwelling unit uninhabitable in a practical sense, however these threats have not been treated previously as a residential lock-out under Illinois law.

(10) Residential lock-outs put an unnecessary strain on the judicial system through the need to issue emergency orders in appropriate circumstances.

(11) The State of Illinois has a housing plan that states the need to put in place policies that prevent homelessness.

Section 10. Purposes.

(a) This Act shall be liberally construed and applied to promote its underlying purposes and policies.

(b) The underlying purposes and policies of this Act are:

(1) to ensure that the Forcible Entry and Detainer provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure are the only means by which a tenant can be evicted; and

(2) to provide a remedy for victims of unlawful residential lock-outs.

Section 15. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act:

"Landlord" and "tenant" shall be defined as those terms are defined in the Rental Property Utility Service Act.

"Dwelling unit" shall have the meaning given to the term "single dwelling unit" in the Dwelling Structure Contract Act.

"Dwelling structure" shall have the meaning given to that term in the Dwelling Structure Contract Act.

"Abandonment" means that circumstance when all tenants have been absent from the dwelling unit for a period of 21 days or for one rental period, whichever is greater, the tenants have removed their personal property from the dwelling unit and dwelling structure, and the rent for the period is unpaid.

"Lock-out" means the ouster or dispossession of a tenant by a landlord without the lawful authority to do so.

"Residential lock-out" means the ouster or dispossession of a tenant by a landlord from the residential premises occupied by the tenant, without the lawful authority to perform the ouster or dispossession.

Section 20. Residential lock-out.

(a) Residential lock-out. It is unlawful for any landlord or any person acting at the direction of a landlord to knowingly perform a residential lock-out, or to threaten or attempt to perform a residential lock-out, of any residential tenant from the tenant's dwelling unit. The following acts by a landlord concerning a tenant constitute a residential lock-out:

(1) incapacitating, changing, adding or removing any lock or latching device to any entrance or exit to the dwelling unit or dwelling structure to which the tenant is entitled to have access;

(2) blocking or rendering useless any entrance or exit into the dwelling unit or dwelling structure including, but not limited to, removing any door or window from the dwelling unit or dwelling structure;

(3) interfering with services to the dwelling unit or dwelling structure including, but not limited to, the failure of the landlord or the agent of the landlord to pay, pursuant to a written or verbal agreement with that tenant, for services to the dwelling unit or dwelling structure including, but not limited to, the services of electricity, gas, hot or cold water, and heat;

(4) removing personal property of a tenant from the tenant's dwelling unit or the dwelling structure;

(5) removing or incapacitating appliances or fixtures that are (i) located in the dwelling unit pursuant to an agreement between the landlord and the tenant and (ii) necessary to make the unit habitable;

(6) using force, violence, or sexual harassment against a tenant;

(7) acting or failing to act in a manner that renders the dwelling unit, the dwelling structure, or any part of the dwelling unit or dwelling structure inaccessible or uninhabitable; or

(8) acting or failing to act in a manner that renders inaccessible any personal property of the tenant in the dwelling unit or the dwelling structure.

(b) Lawful actions. The following actions of a landlord or a person acting at the direction of a landlord directed to a tenant or a tenant's personal property do not constitute a residential lock-out:

(1) eviction by a sheriff or other lawfully deputized officer acting in his or her official capacity after a judgment for possession has been obtained through the Forcible Entry and Detainer provisions of the Code of Civil Procedure;

(2) entry after a tenant has abandoned a dwelling unit, as defined in Section 15 of this Act;

(3) temporary interference with possession:

(A) to make needed repairs or to conduct an emergency inspection, as necessary and only as provided by law and with proper written notice at least 24 hours in advance of the interference;

(B) to make needed repairs or perform maintenance elsewhere in the dwelling structure, for practical necessity, because the nature of the work or a problem that has arisen unexpectedly requires access, provided that proper written notice of explanation is provided to the tenant no later than 2 days after the entry; or

(C) to address an emergency or for a practical necessity, provided that proper written notice of explanation is provided to the tenant no later than 2 days after the entry.

(c) It is an affirmative defense to an alleged violation of this Act if the circumstances concerning the alleged violation are within one of the circumstances described in subparagraphs (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (3) of subsection (b) of Section 20 and the landlord gives the type of written notice required by the applicable subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph (3) of subsection (b) of Section 20.

(d) Whenever a complaint of a violation of this Act is received by a law enforcement agency that has jurisdiction over the location of the dwelling unit or dwelling structure in question, the agency shall investigate and determine whether a violation has occurred. If the law enforcement agency determines that a violation has occurred, the agency shall forward a report of its investigation to the State's Attorney of the county in which the dwelling unit or dwelling structure is located for prosecution. Every person who, by himself or herself or by his or her agents or employees, violates any of the provisions of this Section may for each offense be deemed guilty of a petty offense and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not more than $500 nor less than $200. Each day that a violation occurs or continues constitutes a separate and distinct offense for which a fine shall be imposed.

(e) In addition to any other remedy supplied in this Act or under another law, if a landlord violates this Section, the tenant may file suit in the circuit court and upon proof of a violation shall be entitled to both injunctive relief and damages. Injunctive relief includes, but is not limited to, restoration of possession of the tenant to his or her dwelling unit, personal property, utility service, and relief against future interference. Damages shall be either in the amount of 2 times the tenant's replacement costs, or 6 times the monthly rent for the unit, whichever is greater, plus the tenant's reasonable attorney's fees and costs.

Section 25. Effect on other laws.

(a) More protective laws. Nothing in this Act shall be construed to supersede any provision of any federal, State, or local law that provides greater protections than the rights established under this Act.

(b) Less protective laws. The rights established under this Act shall not be diminished by any State law or local ordinance.

Section 30. Prohibition on waiver or modification. The provisions of this Act may not be waived or modified by an agreement of the parties.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.