(a) A building or dwelling unit owner, or agent thereof, shall not execute an oral or written lease, contract to lease, or accept any money or other valuable consideration in an application for an oral or written lease for a dwelling unit in which utility service for heat is individually metered to the dwelling unit and the tenant is directly responsible to the utility company for paying the cost of heating without disclosing to the tenant or applicant in written form:
(1) That the cost of heating shall be the responsibility of the tenant; and
(2) The annual cost of service from the utility providing the primary source of heat based on energy consumption during the previous twelve months.
The tenant or applicant shall be required to execute a receipt acknowledging that these written disclosures have been made.
(b) Subsection 5-16-010(a) shall not apply to:
(1) oral or written leases for rental dwelling units in which the contracting tenant continues his previous occupancy, providing that the tenant, during that previous term, was directly responsible to the utility company for paying the cost of heating; or
(2) oral or written leases for condominium, cooperative, or other dwelling units in which the primary source of heat is provided centrally by the landlord or building management and the costs of energy for heating are shared and indirectly billed on some basis not directly related to individual dwelling unit usage, such as allocation based on floor space.
(Prior code § 193.2-1; Added Coun. J. 10-15-87, p. 5196; Amend Coun. J. 4-10-13, p. 51233, § 1)