§ 31-44-3. Rules and regulations.
The following requirements and restrictions shall apply to all mobile- and manufactured-home
parks:
(1) A mobile- and manufactured-home park licensee shall promulgate reasonable rules and
regulations that shall specify standards for mobile and manufactured homes in the
park, entry requirements, and rules governing the rental or occupancy of a mobile-
and manufactured-home lot and mobile- and manufactured-home park;
(2) Current rules and regulations promulgated by a mobile- and manufactured-home park
licensee shall be delivered by the licensee to a prospective resident prior to entering
into a rental agreement, and to the resident(s) as soon as promulgated and whenever
revised. A copy of the rules and regulations shall be filed with the director and
posted in a conspicuous place in the mobile- and manufactured-home park;
(3) Any rule or change in rent that does not apply uniformly to all mobile- and manufactured-home
residents of a similar class shall create a rebuttable presumption that the rule or
change in rent is unreasonable;
(4)(i) A mobile- and manufactured-home park licensee shall not impose any conditions of rental
or occupancy that restricts the mobile- and manufactured-home owner in his or her
choice of a seller of fuel, furnishings, goods, services, accessories, or other utilities
connected with the rental or occupancy of a mobile- and manufactured-home lot;
(ii) The licensee who purchases electricity or gas (natural, manufactured, or similar gaseous
substance) from any public utility or municipally owned utility or who purchases water
from a water system for the purpose of supplying or reselling the electricity or gas
to any other person to whom he leases, lets, rents, subleases, sublets, or subrents
the premises upon which the electricity, gas, or water is to be used, shall not charge,
demand, or receive directly or indirectly, any amount for the resale of any electricity,
gas, or water greater than that amount charged by the public utility or municipally
owned utility from which the electricity, gas, or water was purchased or by the public
water system from which the water was purchased;
(iii) However, if the licensee incurs costs in bringing the utility service to individual
units, or in utilizing individual meters, or in some similar cost, the licensee will
be entitled to a return for the investment;
(iv) The park operator shall post in a conspicuous place the prevailing utility rate schedule
as published by the serving utility;
(5) If any mobile- and manufactured-home park licensee adds, changes, deletes, or amends
any rule governing the rental or occupancy of a mobile- and manufactured-home lot
in a mobile- and manufactured-home park, a new copy of all those rules shall be furnished
to all mobile- and manufactured-home residents in the park, and filed with the department
for its review, recommendations, and recording for future reference at least forty-five
(45) days prior to the effective date of the addition, change, deletion, or amendment.
The new copy furnished to the resident shall be signed by both the mobile- and manufactured-home
park owner and the mobile- and manufactured-home park resident. Any mobile park resident
who believes the rule change is in violation of the chapter, may file a complaint
with the director in accordance with § 31-44-17. The complaint shall be filed within twenty (20) days of receipt of written notice
of the change. The complaint shall specify the rule in dispute and contain the basis
by which the change violates this chapter;
(6) If any mobile- and manufactured-home park licensee changes the rent or fees associated
with a mobile- and manufactured-home lot, notice of the change shall be given to the
mobile- and manufactured-home resident at least sixty (60) days prior to the effective
date of the change. Any mobile park resident who believes that the rule change is
in violation of this chapter, may file a complaint with the director in accordance
with § 31-44-17. The complaint shall be filed within twenty (20) days after receipt of written notice
of the change. The complaint shall specify the basis by which the change violates
this chapter;
(7) The owners of individual mobile and manufactured homes shall be entitled to have as
many occupants in their homes as is consistent with the number of bedrooms and/or
bed spaces certified by the manufacturer; provided that the occupancy does not violate
any provision of the general laws or other municipal regulations. All bedrooms shall
consist of a minimum of fifty square feet (50 sq. ft.) of floor area and bedrooms
designed and certified for two (2) or more people shall consist of seventy square
feet (70 sq. ft.) of floor area plus fifty square feet (50 sq. ft.) for each person
in excess of two (2). If there is sufficient bed space, according to the criteria
set forth in this subdivision, additional rent or charges may not be imposed by a
park owner or manager for any person or persons moving in with current resident owners
of a mobile and manufactured home;
(8) A prospective resident shall not be charged an entrance fee for the privilege of leasing
or occupying a mobile- and manufactured-home lot, except as provided in § 31-44-4; provided, that when a mobile and manufactured home is transported onto the mobile-
and manufactured-home park, an entrance fee may be charged. However, if the park owner
received a commission for the sale of the mobile and manufactured home, no entrance
fee shall be charged. A reasonable charge for the fair value of the owner's cost in
obtaining, preparing, and maintaining a lot, or for the fair value of services performed
in placing a mobile and manufactured home on a lot, shall not be considered an entrance
fee, but shall be deemed a hook-up fee or maintenance fee and shall be detailed in
the fee schedule. No tenant, or person seeking space in a mobile- and manufactured-housing
park, shall be required to purchase manufactured housing from any particular person
unless the person designated is the park owner or operator and the requirement is
imposed only in connection with the initial leasing or renting of a newly-constructed
lot or space not previously leased or rented to any other person. A resident may remove
and replace a mobile and manufactured home; provided, that the resident shall install
the mobile and manufactured home in accordance with present park standards regarding
structural requirements and aesthetic maintenance in the mobile- and manufactured-home
park where the replacement occurs, and in accordance with minimum standards for mobile
and manufactured homes established by the United States Department of Housing and
Urban Development. No fee shall be charged by the licensee to residents as a result
of the resident's installation of cable television;
(9) Prior to signing a lease, a licensee shall disclose, in writing, to the prospective
resident:
(i) The rental for the space or lot; and
(ii) Any charges, including service charges, imposed by the licensee. The licensee shall
disclose the rent and charges that were in effect during the three (3) preceding years,
or the period during which the licensee has operated the mobile home park, whichever
is shorter;
(10) A copy of the fee schedule shall be filed with the commission and posted in a conspicuous
place in the mobile- and manufactured-home park; and
(11)(i) A resident shall not be charged a fee for keeping a pet in a mobile- and manufactured-home
park unless the park owner or management actually provides special facilities or services
for pets. If special pet facilities are maintained by the park owner or management,
the fee charged shall reasonably relate to the cost of maintenance of the facilities
or services and the number of pets kept in the park;
(ii) If the park owner or management of a mobile- and manufactured-home park implements
a rule or regulation prohibiting residents from keeping pets in the park, the new
rule or regulation shall not apply to prohibit the residents from continuing to keep
the pets currently in the park if the pet otherwise conforms with the previous park
rules or regulations relating to pets. However, if the pet dies, the resident shall
have the right to replace the pet;
(iii) Any rule or regulation prohibiting residents from keeping pets in a mobile- and manufactured-home
park shall not apply to guide, signal, or service animals;
(12) Any board or commission vested with governing powers over a mobile- or manufactured-home
community, including resident-owned and nonresident-owned mobile home park resident
associations, shall establish and/or adhere to fair and impartial written guidelines
and bylaws for conducting elections that have been provided to all residents of the
mobile home park at least forty-five (45) days prior to any election. The written
guidelines and bylaws shall ensure transparency in the election process with reasonable
and meaningful notice to, and participation of, all residents. The department is authorized
to promulgate rules and regulations necessary to implement this subsection.