2023 District of Columbia Code › Title 42 - Real Property › Chapter 34 - Rental Housing Conversion and Sale › Subchapter II - Conversion Procedures › § 42–3402.08. Tenancy of elderly tenants and tenants with disabilities

§ 42–3402.08. Tenancy of elderly tenants and tenants with disabilities.
(a) Eviction limited. —
(1) For the purposes of this subsection, the term “qualifying income” means a total annual household income, as determined by the Mayor, no greater than 95% of the area median income, as defined in § 42-2801(1).
(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter, Chapter 19 of this title, or Chapter 35 of this title, an owner of a rental unit in a housing accommodation converted under the provisions of this subchapter shall not evict or send notice to vacate to an elderly tenant or tenant with a disability if the combined annual household income for his or her unit, as determined by the Mayor, does not exceed the qualifying income, unless:
(A) The tenant violates an obligation of the tenancy and fails to correct the violation within 30 days after receiving notice of the violation from the owner;
(B) A court of competent jurisdiction has determined that the tenant has performed an illegal act within the rental unit or housing accommodation;
(C) The tenant fails to pay rent; or
(D)(i) For the purposes of a single, scheduled tenant election under § 42-3402.03, the tenant waives, in writing, his or her right to remain a tenant.
(ii) The waiver shall state that it was made voluntarily, without coercion as set forth in § 42-3402.03(h), and with full knowledge of the ramifications of a waiver of the right to remain a tenant.
(iii) The waiver under sub-subparagraph (i) of this subparagraph shall apply only to the single, scheduled tenant election for which it was given.
(b) Rent level. — Any owner of a converted unit shall not charge an elderly tenant or tenant with a disability rent in excess of the lawful rent at the time of request for a tenant election for purposes of conversion plus annual increases on that basis authorized under the Rental Housing Act.
(c) Qualification. –
(1) A tenant shall qualify under this subchapter if, on the day a tenant election is held for the purposes of conversion, the tenant:
(A) Is entitled to the possession, occupancy, or the benefits of the tenant's rental unit; and
(B) Is an elderly tenant or a tenant with a disability.
(2) In making a determination that a tenant qualifies as a tenant with a disability under this subchapter, the Mayor:
(A) Shall limit the inquiry to the minimum information and documentation necessary to establish that the tenant meets the definition of a tenant with a disability and shall not inquire further into the nature or severity of the disability;
(B) Shall not require the tenant to provide a description of the disability when making an eligibility determination; provided, that the Mayor may require that a physician or other licensed healthcare professional verify that a tenant meets the definition of a tenant with a disability; and
(C) Shall not require the tenant to provide eligibility documentation in fewer than 30 days.
(3) The Mayor shall maintain records of the information compiled under this subsection and shall not disclose information about the disability of a tenant unless the disclosure is required by law.
(4) In requesting information under this subsection, the Mayor:
(A) Shall not include a qualified voter's name on any publicly available list of eligible voters;
(B) Shall inform tenants that their names will be absent from publicly available lists of eligible voters; and
(C) Shall not disclose information provided about a tenant's disability unless the disclosure is required by law.
(5) The Mayor may provide a list of eligible voters upon request and may make a list of eligible voters available at the site of the tenant election.
(6) The Mayor shall develop all forms and procedures as may be necessary to verify eligibility under this subsection.
(Sept. 10, 1980, D.C. Law 3-86, § 208, 27 DCR 2975; Mar. 4, 1981, D.C. Law 3-131, § 801(d), 28 DCR 326; Nov. 5, 1983, D.C. Law 5-38, § 2(e), 30 DCR 4866; Nov. 16, 2006, D.C. Law 16-179, § 2(d), 53 DCR 6698; Mar. 8, 2007, D.C. Law 16-240, § 2, 54 DCR 597; Mar. 25, 2009, D.C. Law 17-354, § 2(b), 56 DCR 1155; Apr. 7, 2017, D.C. Law 21-239, § 2(f), 64 DCR 1588.)
Prior Codifications
1981 Ed., § 45-1616.
Section References
This section is referenced in § 42-2107, § 42-3402.03, § 42-3402.04, and § 42-3402.10.
Effect of Amendments
D.C. Law 16-179 rewrote subsec. (a); in subsec. (b), substituted “elderly or disabled” for “elderly”; and rewrote subsec. (c).
D.C. Law 16-240 rewrote subsec. (c)(1)(B)(ii).
D.C. Law 17-354 rewrote subsec. (a)(1), which had read as follows: “(a) Eviction limited.—(1)(A) For the purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualifying income’ means the applicable percentage for the household size, as set forth in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, of the area median income for a household of 4 persons for the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria Metropolitan area, as established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.”
Cross References
Homestead housing preservation, transfers of real estate of elderly tenants, see § 42-2107.
Editor's Notes
Reenactment of Law 3-86: See Historical and Statutory Notes following § 42-3401.01.
Mayor's Orders
Declaration of continuing housing crisis: See Mayor’s Order 83-239, October 7, 1983.