Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writer
The Baltimore County Council on Tuesday considered reinstating a past program for public maps on water, sewage, and transportation and expanding on rental property registration.
Councilwoman Cathy Bevins discussed her bill, No. 24-18, which would expand a program that has been trying to limit the number of unregistered rental properties since 2007. The bill would force landowners to use state certified individuals to inspect their rental properties. Landowners also would be required to meet certain requirements for safety, such as having working smoke detectors, running cold and hot water, and carbon monoxide detectors.
“This is about making [all rental properties] more equal,” said Bevins, during the council’s work session. “We’re just trying to protect people. All properties should have the same safeguards as everyone else.”
The easy going and joking atmosphere within the county meeting was disrupted when Mark Baskerville, an opponent of Bill No. 26-18, gave his testimony and Bevins interjected, asking him, “do you rent your mother’s basement?”
“I think there’re some serious costs that may not have been taken into account here, as well as some potential unconstitutionality in this entire program,” Baskerville responded.
Baskerville said the proposed changes are unconstitutional because they would allow the government to force property owners to pay to have their properties inspected by private organizations. He said the searches would be unwarranted, and “allows the government to become extremely abusive with property owners.”
Michael Mohler, who heads the county’s rental registration program, testified in favor of the bill. He explained that landowners would receive a 90 day notice if they need to have an inspection done. A cautionary notice would be sent to the landowner if the conditions were not met, he said. If the landowners failed to appear for their notice, then they could be fined up to $1,000 a day until they comply, he said.
However, Mohler said if landowners failed to meet the requirements, the fee would be “workable” and that “no one is trying to fine anyone.”
“In 11 years of this being run, we’ve only had that happen once,” Mohler said. “We don’t want to fine anyone and if [landowners] work with us in a reasonable amount of time, we can work with them and waive the $1,000.”
If the bill were to be passed, it would take effect on Sept. 1, councilmembers said.
The council also focused on Bill No. 25-18, admitting a problem with trash and the need for a revision in the law. The council agreed that the program that focused on cleaning trash needed “to be looked into again.”
“It’s about street congestion,” Bevins said. “There’s [also] so much trash lining up the streets.”