Delaware General Assembly


CHAPTER 147

FORMERLY

HOUSE BILL NO. 284

AN ACT TO AMEND 74 LAWS OF DELAWARE 35 (2003) RELATING TO MANUFACTURED HOMES, MANUFACTURED HOME OWNERS, MANUFACTURED HOME COMMUNITIES, MANUFACTURED HOME COMMUNITY OWNERS, AND MANUFACTURED HOME COMMUNITY CONVERSIONS.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE :

Section 1. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by redesignating §7003(t) through (w) as §7003(u) through (x) respectively and by inserting the following immediately after §7003(s):

"(t) 'Seasonal property' means a parcel of land operated as a vacation resort on which two or more lots are rented or offered for rent for the placement of manufactured homes or other dwellings used less than 8 months of the year. A seasonal property is characterized by a lack of availability of year-round utilities and by the fact that its tenants have primary residences elsewhere.".

Section 2. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking "Exemption." where it appears as the section heading of §7004 and by substituting in lieu thereof "Exemptions."; and by designating the present text of §7004 as subsection (a) and by adding to §7004 a new subsection (b) to read:

"(b) The rental of ground within the category of seasonal property is exempt from the requirements of this subchapter, and nothing in this subchapter may be construed as determining, regulating, or governing the legal rights of parties to any lease or rental agreement for the rental of ground within the category of seasonal property.".

Section 3. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking the phrase "There is no requirement that any of these four members reside in Delaware; however," as it appears in the fifth sentence of §7011(a) and by substituting in lieu thereof the following:

"Two out of 4 of these members must reside in this State, and".

Section 4. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by adding the following as the last sentence of §7011(a):

"The Governor shall designate one member of the board of directors as the chairperson of the board.".

Section 5. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking the phrase "the Consumer Protection Unit of the Attorney General's Office" as it appears in §7012(a) and in §7014(b) and in §7015(a) and by substituting in lieu thereof in each place the phrase "the Division of Revenue of the Department of Finance".

Section 6. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking "located." where it appears at the end of §7012(b)(2) and by substituting in lieu thereof the following:

"located or where the community owner intends to convert the manufactured home community to a manufactured home condominium community or to a manufactured home cooperative community pursuant to Chapter 71 of this title, and by assisting manufactured home community owners with the removal and/or disposal of non-relocatable or abandoned manufactured homes.".

Section 7. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by adding three new subsections to §7012 to read:

"(g) The Authority may not for any reason, including age, income level, or geography, exempt any landlord or tenant from paying the Trust Fund assessment.

(h) The Trust Fund must be audited annually. If the State Auditor's Office performs the audit, the Authority shall pay to the State from the Trust Fund the cost of the audit. The completed audit must be made available to the public by placing it on a website, by offering it as a hard copy for a fee which reflects reasonable reproduction cost, or in some other manner determined by the Authority.

(i) In addition to providing for an annual audit pursuant to subsection (h) of this section, the Authority shall make available to the public, at least on a quarterly basis, the amount of the payment made to each tenant and landlord, along with a description of the property related to the payment and the reason for the payment.".

Section 8. Amend Section 2 of the 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by inserting "or conversion" between the phrases "change in use" and "of the land" as they appear in §7013(a).

Section 9. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking the phrase "the Unit" as it appears in §7014(b) and in §7015(a) and by substituting in lieu thereof in each place the phrase "the Division".

Section 10. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking the phrase "; persons serving in the armed forces" as it appears in the section heading of §7017 and substituting in lieu of the stricken phrase a period ("."); and by striking in its entirety the second sentence in §7017(b).

Section 11. Amend Section 2 of 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) by striking §7018(j) in its entirety.

Section 12. Effective Date. This Act becomes effective on the date on which 74 Del. Laws 35 (2003) (formerly known as House Bill No. 2 as amended by House Amendments Nos. 1, 2 & 4 of the 142nd General Assembly) becomes effective.

Approved July 11, 2003