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Minutes for HB2506 - Committee on Local Government
Short Title
Rehabilitation of abandoned property by cities.
Minutes Content for Tue, Jan 23, 2018
Chairperson Williams opened the hearing on the bill.
Mike Heim presented an overview of the bill.
Neutral
Chairperson Williams opened the neutral portion of the hearing first to allow Senator Daniel Haley to attend another engagement.
Senator Haley presented neutral testimony stating everyone should be committed to stopping blight, but his concern was the taking of property. Additionally, he asked the committee to consider removing the time frame from the definition of abandonment and proposed other amendments for the committee to consider when the bill is worked. (Attachment 1)
Proponent
Whitney Damron testified in support of the bill. He explained how this bill melds existing law with working definitions of abandonment that have been in place and how it provides a method for the owner, should s/he become known, to accept responsibility and bring the property into code compliance within 90 days. He also defined what the bill does and does not do. (Attachment 2)
Doug Gerber testified in support of the bill. He presented findings from a study the City commissioned through the Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs of the Public Affairs Policy and Management Center at Wichita State University. The study showed a significant relationship between abandoned housing and the frequency of public safety responses. (Attachment 3) The Committee asked Gerber to provide a copy of the study. He said he would send it electronically. (Attachment 23)
Dick Carter, Jr. testified in support of the bill stating it will supplement local government's ability to do basic code enforcement on abandoned structures and will help safeguard neighborhoods and adjacent property owners from blight. (Attachment 4)
Patrick Vogelsberg testified in support of the bill stating it provides a way to revitalize neighborhoods and to still protect the property rights of private property owners. They approve the bill as written. (Attachment 5)
Trey Cocking testified in support of the bill. He noted that cities have long had tools to let them address dangerous structures, but they have had limited resources to address merely abandoned property. HB2506 gives them the same ability to deal with abandoned and blighted real estate as with dangerous property, allowing cities to address problems before they become dangerous. (Attachment 6)
Kiel Mangus submitted written only testimony in support of the bill. He stated that the City of Manhattan is in favor of amending the process of determining what is abandoned in order to better allow cities to deal with blighted and debilitating structures before they become unsafe and ultimately torn down. (Attachment 7)
Jeff Cantrell provided written testimony in support of the bill. He presented a vision of a statutory mechanism allowing cities to temporarily intervene with the ownership of abandoned properties would allow programs that would aid first-time home buyers to take over formerly abandoned property. Grants could also be set to allow seniors or other low-income qualified participants to convert these properties into owner occupied homes. This would turn neighborhoods nearing 20% vacancy to return to the more stable status of 5-8% vacancy and turn around the degeneration of an entire community. (Attachment 8)
David Dillner provided written testimony in support of the bill. He stated that abandoned property reduces nearby property values; creates an attractive nuisance to children; can harbor vagrants, criminals or immoral people; and create a public health concern by propagating rodents and other wildlife, mold, stagnant water and other issues; as well as increasing the risk of fire to the abandoned property and nearby structures. (Attachment 9)
Tim Vandall provided written testimony in support of the bill. He stated that Lansing struggles with abandoned property creating an eyesore and negative perception of their community to the people who travel through. Implementing this bill would help them to improve their city and the public's opinion of it. (Attachment 10)
Thomas A. Brown provided written testimony in support of the bill. He stated that abandoned property owners are either absentee landowners or owners unwilling to invest to bring the structures to minimal habitation standards. Current procedures available to Kansas cities to declare a property abandoned are tedious, expensive and time consuming. (Attachment 11)
Mark Wassom provided written testimony in support of the bill, noting that present codes provided limited actions to make an owner comply with city ordinances with lengthy processes in place to enforce compliance. By the time all of these are exhausted, the property has declined so far it must be demolished. (Attachment 12)
Jason A. Gage provided written testimony in support of the bill stating that the bill offers a reasonable application of a city's authority to address abandoned property without the use of demolition. It gives Kansas cities a proper tool to preserve core neighborhoods. (Attachment 13)
Jeff Longwell and Brandon Johnson provided written testimony in support of the bill, stating that the status quo is not working for Kansas neighborhoods. This bill provides a balance between the needs of the city and the property rights of owners as well as property rights of those in the vicinity. (Attachment 14)
Mike Taylor provided joint written testimony in support of the bill stating that the bill provides a procedure to remedy the blight and to return the property to useful housing.That helps citizens, neighborhoods and the city-at-large. (Attachment 15)
Curtis Sneden provided written testimony in support of the bill. He noted that the Chamber represents the local business community and is inherently committed to preserving and protecting individual property rights from encroachment. HB2506 would ensure, on one hand, that no well-intentioned property owner will suddenly find him/herself stripped of interests without adequate notice and due process while enabling cities to finally step-in and restore blighted properties to viable membership in the community. (Attachment 16)
Ed Klumpp provided written testimony in support of the bill noting that blighted abandoned homes are a haven for drug activity, arson, metal thefts, and other crimes. They create a safety hazard for neighborhood children and create a place where children can become victims of violent crimes. They devalue neighborhood properties and demoralize owners of neighboring properties, leading to a downward spiral in the condition of all properties in the area. This bill will provide a tool to stop this cycle. (Attachment 17)
Opponent
John R. Todd assisted by Warren Pyles testified in opposition to the bill. Todd expressed that current Kansas law already gives cities the tools to deal with vacant and dangerous buildings. Implementing this bill is an expansion of eminent domain powers. (Attachment 18)
Patrick DeLapp testified in opposition to the bill. He stated the bill takes property from legal owners without due compensation and that property rehabilitated by non-profit organizations will be removed from the tax rolls. (Attachment 19)
Michael Bell testified in opposition to the bill. He identified four existing methods to deal with derelict property and suggested there were already methods in place to handle this problem. (Attachment 20)
Dr. Walt Chappell testified in opposition to the bill stating that many communities with abandoned property exist because of greater dynamics that force certain groups of people to live in these neighborhoods. When the homes are cited for code violations, the property owners know they are in violation but cannot afford to make the repairs. He suggested programs should be created to work with these owners to revitalize their neighborhoods. (Attachment 21)
William T. Davitt provided written testimony in opposition to the bill. He provided a photocopy of the section of the Bible that records the Ten Commandments (Attachment 22) and said "You shall not steal." He declared that this bill is a shameful and sinful scheme to grab the house and land of a neighbor by using the legislature to make it legal. (Attachment 23)
Richard Ranzau provided written testimony in opposition to the bill citing the bill would expand a city's authority to take private property for non-public purposes, which he calls "eminent domain light." He declared that cities already have enough tools in their toolboxes to deal with these problems. (Attachment 24)
Discussion
It was confirmed that under the bill, in order to be considered abandoned, a home must be continuously unoccupied for a period of 15 months and to be delinquent on property taxes for the preceding two years. There was also discussion regarding the petition process and the requirement for a history of municipal utility service to the property for the preceding 365 days or longer. There was discussion about the tax sale process, its cost and time frame.
Representative Gail Finney, Kansas House, District 84, noted her concern with the notice given for the hearing on HB2506. The Chairperson responded by noting the subject matter was listed on the agenda. At the time the agenda was published, a bill number was not yet available.
There were additional questions and answers after each section of the testimony. When discussion and questions were finished, Chairperson Williams closed the hearing on the bill.
Chairperson Williams asked if there were any bill introductions. With none present, she adjourned the meeting at 2:45 PM.
