(A) A tenant may petition for a reduction of rent ("rent reduction petition") if the tenant believes that the landlord has demanded, accepted, or retained fromthe tenant any rent in excess of the rent permitted by this Rent Stabilization chapter. The landlord shall be informed of the tenant's complaint and shall have the opportunity to respond to the tenant's claim of rent overcharge.
(1) Such rent reduction petition shall be on an application form prescribed by the City Attorney or designee and shall be decided by a Hearing Officer subject to § 1-6.01 designated by the City Attorney.
(2) The tenant shall provide a copy of any rent reduction petition submitted to the city to the applicable landlord and shall provide the city with proof of completing such service to the applicable landlord. The landlord shall have 30 days from the date of receiving the rent reduction petition to reply or provide additional materials to the city in response to the rent reduction petition.
(3) The tenant shall bear the burden of establishing that a rent reduction is necessary to comply with the city's Rent Stabilization Ordinance by providing information including the type of dwelling, dates of tenancy, dates of rent increases, amount of rent increases, dates of charges, and amounts of charges.
(B) The factors the Hearing Officer may consider in deciding a rent reduction petition shall be matters related to the landlord's failure to comply with the city's Rent Stabilization Ordinance and regulations. For example, the amount of rent that the landlord has actually demanded, accepted, or retained from the tenant exceeds the amount of rent that the landlord could lawfully charge. The Hearing Officer may also consider a landlord's decrease of housing services.
(C) A rent reduction petition shall be decided by the Hearing Officer within 60 calendar days of the date that the application has been deemed complete, including submission of proof of service of the rent reduction petition on the applicable landlord(s), unless an extension of this time has been agreed upon by the parties. The decision shall be sent by mail and shall be emailed with proof of mailing to the applicable tenant(s), the designated representative of the tenant(s), the subject landlord, and the landlord's designated representative(s) for the rent reduction petition, if any. The decision of the Hearing Officer shall be the final decision.
(Ord. 2219-C-S, passed 10-11-22; Am. Ord. 2227-C-S, passed 6-27-2023)