House Bill 1403 is currently being debated in the General Assembly in Indianapolis.
Sponsor Jud McMillin (R-Brookville) said the bill would make sure apartment dwellers would have safe places to live and reduce government intrusion into private business.
It was prompted by cities in northwest Indiana that were charging apartment owners inspections fees and allegedly using the proceeds as additional revenue for the general fund. The language of this bill would end that practice.
But until it passes, a state-mandated moratorium on new apartment inspection ordinance and fees that was enacted in February 2013 will remain in place.
The bill’s text states that tenants could be required to reimburse owners for fees they are charged by municipalities for the inspection service and that municipalities may not inspect a rental unit or impose a fee pertaining to a rental unit that is managed by a “professional real estate manager.”
McMillin said the definition of such managers isn’t yet defined in the bill. And local officials in Carmel city government are concerned that the language in the bill could allow apartments to self-inspect.
That prospect is a concern because last year a dispute over code violation fines between the managers of Mohawk Hills Apartments and the City of Carmel nearly went to a jury trial.
The case was dismissed with prejudice on Jan. 13 after Mohawk Associates agreed to pay $4,500 to reimburse the city for its inspection costs and then chose to make contributions to two charitable causes – $10,000 to a fund for the family of Shakir Paschall, whose father died the night of Carmel’s semi-state football game, and $10,000 to the Center for the Performing Arts.
But McMillin said there is no need for concern.
“They won’t be self-inspecting,” he said.
He noted that hired inspectors would need to meet one of the following criteria: be employed by or perform inspections for government agencies (such as the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority), be a registered architect, professional engineer, perform inspections for financial institutions or insurance companies or satisfy qualifications for an inspector of rental units prescribed by the political subdivision.
“I hope the end result is we can provide more inspections more often,” McMillin said.
