Hundreds of East Bay tenants may be at risk of having their water shut off after a state bill aimed at ensuring uninterrupted water service was vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger Thursday.
The bill would have given water providers lien authority, or a legal hold over a property that ensures payment for a debt, instead of cutting off service to tenants whose landlords, often banks taking over foreclosures, did not pay their water bills.
Since the East Bay Municipal Utility District's moratorium on water shut-offs for foreclosed units expired yesterday at midnight, affected tenants could now lose their water service.
According to water district officials, about 127 foreclosed buildings with up to 600 tenants may have their water shut off. About 10 to 15 percent of the cases are in Berkeley, said Andy Katz, a member of the district's board of directors.
Tenants' water will not be turned off immediately, Katz said. Notices will be sent to landlords and then two will be sent to tenants. If the bills go unpaid, the district plans to turn off water in early November.
In a statement to the state assembly, Schwarzenegger said the bill "takes the wrong approach of potentially increasing the costs associated with foreclosed property" and could pose "an adverse economic impact on California" by impeding sales of foreclosed property.
But Assemblymember Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, a bill sponsor, said the governor's decision to veto the bill shows a "tremendous lack of empathy" for tenants caught in the foreclosure problem, who will suffer the consequences although they are not at fault.
According to Hancock, every other water district in the state has the right to use liens to collect the water bill.
"It's a capricious act to single out one water district and not allow it the same ability to protect tenants that every water district has," she said.
In his statement, Schwarzenegger said landlords are already required to provide habitable housing, which entails access to water.
But Katz said it might be difficult to enforce that provision before a tenant's water is turned off.
"By the time housing code enforcement gets to the apartment, it's already too late. So that's why East Bay MUD sponsored legislation that would allow us to collect the unpaid bills using liens like the city of San Francisco," he said.
According to Jay Kelekian, executive director of Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board, the new landlord must pay the water bill if the service was part of the tenants' original rent agreement.
"Our goal is that tenants not inadvertently suffer a rent increase with the foreclosure," he said. "We hope to provide information to both sides, so the lender understands upfront they're going to have to pay anyway and just shift the bill into their name."
As of September 15, the unpaid bills amount to about $87,500, Katz said.
If the landlord does not begin to pay the water bill by November, the tenant should pay the bill and then petition the rent board for a refund, Kelekian said.
Hancock said she was disappointed that her bill was vetoed."This is a very sad situation for many people in the East Bay," she said.
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