(A) It shall be a violation of this subchapter for any owner, landlord or managing agent of a rental unit to:
(1) Fail to take prompt, diligent and lawful steps to remove the tenant from possession of the rental unit:
(a) Following notice of the commission of a felony or a Class A misdemeanor in the rental unit where allowed or permitted by tenant;
(b) Following notice of four ordinance violations committed within any six-month period in the rental unit, or in common areas related to the rental unit, where allowed or permitted by tenant; or
(c) Following notice of other violation of the crime-free rental agreement addendum, as now or as hereafter amended, where violation of that addendum expressly constitutes good cause for termination of the rental agreement.
(2) Fail to pay and satisfy any fee, fine, judgment or lien in favor of the city and against the licensed owner, landlord or managing agent, or the rental property.
(B) The Director of Residential and Commercial Development Services shall provide notice to the owner, landlord or managing agent that a complaint has been filed with the Hearing Officer appointed hereunder. The Hearing Officer shall conduct a hearing to suspend or revoke the crime-free housing certificate of any owner, landlord or managing agent where, after notice and hearing, the Hearing Officer shall make findings determining:
(1) Whether any act or omission that would constitute a felony or a Class A misdemeanor under state law was committed on the leased premises (rental unit) or on common areas related to the licensed premises (rental unit);
(2) Whether four or more violations of city ordinances were committed within any six-month period within the leased premises (rental unit), or on common areas related to the leased premises (rental unit);
(3) Whether the certified owner, landlord or managing agent failed to take prompt, diligent and lawful steps to remove the tenant from possession of the leased premises (rental unit):
(a) Following notice of the commission of a felony or a Class A misdemeanor in the leased premises (rental unit) where committed, allowed or permitted by tenant; or
(b) Following notice of four ordinance violations committed within any six-month period in the leased premises (rental unit), or in common areas related to the leased premises (rental unit), where committed, allowed or permitted by tenant; or
(c) Following notice of other violation of the crime-free rental agreement addendum, as now or as hereafter amended, where violation of that addendum expressly constitutes good cause for termination of the rental agreement.
(4) Whether the owner, landlord or managing agent failed to pay and satisfy any fee, fine, judgment or lien in favor of the city and against the licensed owner, landlord or managing agent, or the rental property.
(C) The city and the owner, landlord or managing agent shall be given 14 days’ notice of any hearing under this section for the suspension or revocation of a crime-free housing certificate, and the city and the owner, landlord or managing agent shall be given an opportunity to present relevant evidence. If the hearing on suspension or revocation of a crime-free housing certificate is to be based on the conduct of a tenant or the conduct in a tenant’s rental unit, the tenant shall also be given 14 days’ notice of any hearing under this section and shall also be given an opportunity to be heard. The Hearing Officer shall have the power to administer oaths and require the attendance of any city employees. The hearing shall be recorded. Upon consideration of the evidence presented at hearing, the Hearing Officer shall make written findings of fact and issue a written decision, which shall be promptly mailed to the city and the owner, landlord or managing agent as applicable. The affirmative defense provided in 75 ILCS 5/9-106.2 shall be available to the owner, landlord, managing agent or tenant at any hearing held hereunder.
(D) If at the hearing held hereunder, the Hearing Officer finds a violation of this subchapter, the Hearing Officer shall be authorized to order as to the owner, landlord or managing agent, one or more of the following:
(1) Retraining and successful completion of a crime-free housing seminar, conducted or authorized by the Director of Residential and Commercial Development Services within a specified time frame to be determined by the Hearing Officer;
(2) Suspension of the owner, landlord, or managing agent’s crime-free housing certificate for up to 90 days or 60 days after completion of corrective action, during which time the owner, landlord or managing agent will be unable to issue any new rental agreements;
(3) Revocation of the owner, landlord or managing agent’s crime-free housing certificate. Notwithstanding any contrary provision herein, the owner, landlord or managing agent may invoke at hearing an affirmative defense set forth in § 9-106.2 of the Illinois Code of Civil Procedure (735 ILCS 5/9-106.2) that, if proven by a preponderance of the evidence, shall avoid the requirement to remove the tenant from the leased premises (rental unit) for any initial incident involving domestic violence or sexual violence at the leased premises (rental unit), provided that the owner, landlord or managing agent must have barred the perpetrator of such domestic violence or sexual violence in accordance with applicable subsections (f) and/or (g) thereof.
(1960 Code, § 3-3-18) (Ord. 7715, passed 9-16-2013; Ord. 8071-2017, passed 7-17-2017; Ord. 8433-2020, passed 3-2-2020) Penalty, see § 154.99