Assigned to CED                                                                                                         AS PASSED BY THE SENATE

 

 

 

 

ARIZONA STATE SENATE

Forty-eighth Legislature, First Regular Session

 

AMENDED

FACT SHEET FOR H.B. 2230

 

recreational vehicle parks; utility charges

(NOW:  recreational vehicle parks; study committee)

 

Purpose

 

            Establishes the Recreational Vehicle Park Utility Services Legislative Study Committee (Committee).

 

Background

 

            The Recreational Vehicle Long-term Rental Space Act (Act), which is based loosely on the Mobile Home Parks Landlord and Tenant Act, regulates the landlord/tenant relationship for a recreational vehicle (RV) user who rents space for more than 180 consecutive days in either an RV park or a mobile home park that also contains RVs. It prescribes terms and conditions of rental agreements and disclosures in written rental agreements; governs noncompliance by a landlord, termination or nonrenewal of a rental agreement by a landlord and noncompliance by a tenant; and prohibits specified retaliatory acts. It does not address utility rates charged by landlords and does not apply to mobile homes, manufactured homes or factory-built buildings or to parks with fewer than three RV rental spaces. “RV” includes motor homes, travel trailers and trucks with campers. 

 

            The Mobile Home Parks Landlord and Tenant Act requires a landlord who charges separately for gas, water or electricity to have a separate meter for every user. For each billing period, the cost of the charges for the period must be separately stated, along with the opening and closing meter readings and the dates of the meter readings. Each bill must show the computation of the charge in accordance with the serving utility company billing format for individual service supplied through a single service meter. The landlord may not charge more than the prevailing basic service single family residential rate charged by the serving utility or provider (A.R.S. § 33-1413.01).  H.B. 2230 establishes a study committee to investigate utility rates charged in RV parks and to recommend RV park utility services legislation.

 

            There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this measure.        

 

Provisions

 

1.      Establishes the Committee, consisting of the following nine members:

a)      two members from the House of Representatives (House) who are appointed by the Speaker of the House (Speaker) and who represent two different political parties. The Speaker designates one of these members as co-chairperson.

b)      two members from the Senate who are appointed by the President of the Senate (President) and who represent two different political parties. The President designates one of these members as co-chairperson.

c)      the Chairman of the Arizona Corporation Commission or the chairman’s designee.

d)     a representative of the Residential Consumer Utility Office, appointed by the Speaker.

e)      a representative of a recreational vehicle park association, appointed by the President.

f)       a representative of a manufactured homeowners’ association, appointed by the Speaker.

g)      a representative of a manufactured home park association, appointed by the President.

 

2.      Requires the Committee to do the following:

a)      identify utility rates that Arizona utility companies charge to RV parks.

b)      identify utility rates being charged to long-term RV tenants in Arizona RV parks and manufactured home parks.

c)      identify an appropriate method for cost allocation of utilities to the tenants in RV parks and manufactured home parks.

d)     recommend RV park utility services legislation that incorporates the findings of the Committee.

 

3.      Requires the Committee to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Speaker and the President on or before December 31, 2007, and to provide a copy of the report to the Secretary of State and the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records.

 

4.      Repeals the Committee on June 1, 2008.

 

5.      Becomes effective on the general effective date.

 

Amendments Adopted by Committee of the Whole

 

·         Reduces the number of Committee members from 13 to 9.

 

House Action                                                              Senate Action

 

COM               2/14/07     DPA/SE     9-0-0-1            CED                3/14/07     DP     5-0-3-0

3rd Read           2/26/07                        42-17-1-0        3rd Read           4/26/07               19-8-3-0

 

Prepared by Senate Research

April 27, 2007

LB/NM/jas