SB 20

SENATE BILL NO. 20
A bill to amend 1978 PA 454, entitled
"Truth in renting act,"
by amending section 6 (MCL 554.636).
the people of the state of michigan enact:
Sec. 6. (1) If a rental agreement contains a provision which that violates
section 3, and if the landlord fails to cure the violation by exercising the
notice provisions of section 5 within 20 days after the tenant gives written
notice to the landlord of the provision believed to be in violation and the
reason therefor, for
the violation, a tenant may bring an action for any of the following
relief:
(a) To void the
rental agreement and terminate the tenancy.
(b) To enjoin the
lessor from including the provision in any rental agreement subsequently
entered into and to require the lessor to exercise the notice procedure
provided in section 5 to cure the violation in all rental agreements in which
the provision occurs and to which the lessor is currently a party.
(c) To recover
damages in the amount of $250.00 per action, or actual damages, whichever is
greater.
(2) If a rental
agreement fails to contain a provision as required by section 4 or contains a
provision which that
is explicitly and unambiguously prohibited by section 3, and if the
landlord fails to cure the violation by exercising the notice provisions of
section 5 within 20 days after the tenant, or, where there is more than one
plaintiff, each tenant, gives written notice to the landlord of the provision
required by section 4 or absence of a provision believed to be in violation and
the reason therefor, for the violation, a tenant may bring an action for
any of the following relief:
(a) To avoid the
rental agreement and terminate the tenancy.
(b) To enjoin the
lessor from including the provision which that violates section 3 in any rental agreement
subsequently entered into and to require the lessor to exercise the notice
procedure provided in section 5 to cure the violation in all rental agreements
in which the provision occurs and to which the lessor is currently a party.
(c) To enjoin the
lessor from failing to comply with section 4 in any rental agreement
subsequently entered into and to require the lessor to exercise the notice
procedure provided in section 5 to cure the violation.
(d) To recover
damages in the amount of $500.00, or actual damages, whichever is greater.
(3) A tenant may
exercise the remedies of this section without the prior notice to the landlord
required by subsections (1) and (2) under any of the following circumstances:
(a) If a rental
agreement contains a provision which that has previously been determined by a court of
record to be in violation of section 3 in an action to which the lessor was a
party.
(b) If a rental
agreement contains a provision which that the lessor actually knew was in violation of
section 3 at the time the rental agreement was entered into.
(c) If a rental
agreement does not include a provision as required by section 4 and the lessor
actually knew that the provision was not included as required at the time the
rental agreement was entered into. As used in subdivisions (b) and (c),
"actual knowledge" shall must be established by written documentation,
evidencing the actual knowledge, written or issued by the lessor or an agent of
the lessor who is authorized to execute rental agreements or by an admission,
evidencing the actual knowledge, made by the lessor or an agent of the lessor
who is authorized to execute rental agreements or by showing the lessor has
previously given notice under section 5 relating to the same provision which that is the
subject of the current action.
(4) A party who
prevails in an action under this section is entitled to recover court costs
plus statutory attorney fees.
(5) All actions
brought under subsection (1) with respect to a particular provision of a rental
agreement shall must
be joined, and only 1 judgment for damages of $250.00 shall must be
awarded with respect to a particular provision even if there are multiple
actions or multiple plaintiffs if, before judgment in the initial action and
before the passage of 30 days after service of process in any second action,
the lessor gives written notice to all tenants who are currently subject to
that provision, stating that the enforceability of the provision is under
dispute and may be determined by a court of law. However, this subsection does
not prohibit a tenant from recovering actual damages, if any, with respect to
an unlawful provision of a rental agreement. As used in this subsection,
"action" means a court action instituted by a single plaintiff, a
representative plaintiff, or multiple plaintiffs.
(6) If a rental
agreement contains the provisions as required by section 4 but contains a
provision which that
violates this act, solely because of a judicial construction by a court
of record of a provision of a statute cited in section 3 in an action to which
the lessor was a party, the lessor shall not be subject to the penalties of
this act unless the lessor fails to cure the violation by exercising the notice
provisions of section 5 within 30 days following the final determination by the
court. For purposes of this subsection, section
39(2) of chapter 66 of the Revised Statutes of 1846, being section 554.139 of
the Michigan Compiled Laws, shall not be considered to have been judicially
construed as of the effective date of this act.
(7) For purposes of As used
in this section, "tenant" means a person who that is
currently a party to a rental agreement with the lessor.
Enacting section 1.
This amendatory act does not take effect unless all of the following bills of
the 103rd Legislature are enacted into law:
(a)    Senate Bill No. 21.
(b) Senate Bill No. 19.