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Rules Committee forwards ordinance to strengthen bed‑bug reporting, training and disclosure
Summary
The Rules Committee advanced an ordinance directing the Department of Public Health to expand written tenant/owner guidance, create a training curriculum for pest control and property managers, require two‑year disclosure of infestation history on request, and require quarterly pest‑control reporting to DPH; the committee moved the item forward with amendments and no opposition.
Supervisor Jane Kim on Thursday introduced legislation she said grew from two and a half years of work by a citywide bed‑bug working group, aiming to clarify responsibilities and collect better data on infestations.
The ordinance—as read into the record by the clerk—would require the Department of Public Health to produce written information about the rights and responsibilities of tenants, property owners and pest‑control operators; develop a training curriculum on bed‑bug abatement; require owners to respond to infestation complaints; require property owners to disclose a unit’s bed‑bug history for the previous two years upon tenant request; require pest‑control operators (PCOs) to report abatements to DPH quarterly; and establish enforcement procedures and related environmental findings.
Why it matters: Tenants and tenant organizers told the committee the problem is widespread, affects seniors and non‑English speakers disproportionately, and causes physical, emotional and economic harm. "The shock was awful," testified Ernestine Waters Weiss, recounting destroyed clothing and having to vacate her unit. Tenant leaders from SRO collaboratives said clearer rules and training would help managers and tenants respond promptly and avoid repeated infestations.
Karen Cohn, a program manager in DPH's environmental health division, said DPH issued director's rules effective July 1 and generally supports the ordinance because it expands surveillance and enforcement authority beyond what the department can do under its current rulemaking. Cohn asked the committee to adjust one provision (Section 6.24) to name the department rather than the Health Commission as the entity to run the public review process every two years, saying DPH currently has authority to conduct and amend rules without commission approval.
Tenant advocates pressed for implementation funding. "Unless funding supports this work, what we say we can commit to is often different than what we can actually do," said Jorge Portillo, a program coordinator with the Mission SRO Collaborative, who urged the Board to consider funds for laundry services, unit prep assistance and other supports.
Supervisor David Campos, a cosponsor, thanked tenants and advocates and moved to amend the ordinance to reflect several staff and stakeholder suggestions: require DPH to update the informational materials every two years, explicitly list tenants among responsible parties for abatement steps where appropriate, exclude the disclosure requirement from tourist hotels while leaving enforcement applicable to them, change PCO reporting from ZIP code to census tract, and align reinspection schedules to DPH director’s rules.
After public comment, the committee voted to forward the ordinance with the recommended amendments to the full Board without recorded opposition.
What’s next: The item will go to the full Board of Supervisors for consideration. Implementation details—particularly whether additional DPH staffing or budget requests will be required to support inspection or certification components—remain to be worked out in follow‑up proceedings.
Sources: Committee hearing testimony from Supervisor Jane Kim, Josh Vining (Mission SRO Collaborative), Tina Chung (Bed Bug Working Group), Karen Cohn (DPH), tenant witnesses, and committee motions (Rules Committee, Oct. 18, 2012).
