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CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 1A. STRUCTURE OF COUNTY GOVERNMENT - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 2. ADMINISTRATION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 2B. AGRICULTURAL LAND PRESERVATION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 3. AIR QUALITY CONTROL - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 3A. ALARMS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 5. ANIMAL CONTROL - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 8. BUILDINGS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 8A. CABLE COMMUNICATIONS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 10B. COMMON OWNERSHIP COMMUNITIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 11. CONSUMER PROTECTION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 11A. CONDOMINIUMS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 11B. CONTRACTS AND PROCUREMENT - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 13. DETENTION CENTERS AND REHABILITATION FACILITIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 15. EATING AND DRINKING ESTABLISHMENTS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 16. ELECTIONS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 17. ELECTRICITY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 18A. ENERGY POLICY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 19. EROSION, SEDIMENT CONTROL AND STORMWATER MANAGEMENT - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 19A. ETHICS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 20 FINANCE - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 21 FIRE AND RESCUE SERVICES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 22. FIRE SAFETY CODE - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 22A. FOREST CONSERVATION - TREES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 23A. GROUP HOMES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 24. HEALTH AND SANITATION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 24A. HISTORIC RESOURCES PRESERVATION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 24B. HOMEOWNERS’ ASSOCIATIONS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 25. HOSPITALS, SANITARIUMS, NURSING AND CARE HOMES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 25A. HOUSING, MODERATELY PRICED - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 25B. HOUSING POLICY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 26. HOUSING AND BUILDING MAINTENANCE STANDARDS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 27. HUMAN RIGHTS AND CIVIL LIBERTIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 27A. INDIVIDUAL WATER SUPPLY AND SEWAGE DISPOSAL FACILITIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 29. LANDLORD-TENANT RELATIONS - REGULATIONS
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CHAPTER 30. LICENSING AND REGULATIONS GENERALLY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 30C. MOTOR VEHICLE TOWING AND IMMOBILIZATION ON PRIVATE PROPERTY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 31. MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 31A. MOTOR VEHICLE REPAIR AND TOWING REGISTRATION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 31B. NOISE CONTROL - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 31C. NEW HOME BUILDER AND SELLER REGISTRATION AND WARRANTY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 33. PERSONNEL AND HUMAN RESOURCES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 33B. PESTICIDES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 35. POLICE - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 36. POND SAFETY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 38A. RADIO, TELEVISION AND ELECTRICAL APPLIANCE INSTALLATION AND REPAIRS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 40. REAL PROPERTY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 41. RECREATION AND RECREATION FACILITIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 41A. RENTAL ASSISTANCE - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 42A. RIDESHARING AND TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 44. SCHOOLS AND CAMPS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 44A. SECONDHAND PERSONAL PROPERTY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 45. SEWERS, SEWAGE DISPOSAL AND DRAINAGE - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 47. VENDORS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 48. SOLID WASTES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 49. STREETS AND ROADS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 50. SUBDIVISION OF LAND - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 51 SWIMMING POOLS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 51A. TANNING FACILITIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 52. TAXATION - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 53. TAXICABS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 53A. TENANT DISPLACEMENT - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 54. TRANSIENT LODGING FACILITIES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 55. TREE CANOPY - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 56. URBAN RENEWAL AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 56A. VIDEO GAMES - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 57. WEAPONS - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 59. ZONING - REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 60. SILVER SPRING, BETHESDA, WHEATON AND MONTGOMERY HILLS PARKING LOT DISTRICTS - REGULATIONS
MISCELLANEOUS MONTGOMERY COUNTY REGULATIONS
TABLE 1 Previous COMCOR Number to Current COMCOR Number
TABLE 2 Executive Regulation Number to Current COMCOR Number
TABLE 3 Executive Order Number to Current COMCOR Number
INDEX BY AGENCY
INDEX BY SUBJECT
County Attorney Opinions and Advice of Counsel
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29.35D.02.07 Variances
      (a)   Compliance is infeasible. In limited situations in which a Landlord’s compliance with the Window Guard technical requirements provided in this regulation are structurally infeasible, a Landlord may request that the Director grant a variance from the technical requirements.
      (b)   Requirements of proposed substituted device. In order for a variance request to be considered, the Landlord must demonstrate that the substituted device or devices proposed by the Landlord meet the same criteria and standards of safety prescribed in this regulation, including but not limited to, installing the device safely and securely, limiting the opening of the window to no more than four (4) inches, and preventing the passage of a solid sphere four (4) inches in diameter at every space and interval of the device, including around its perimeter.
      (c)   Variance request in writing. A Landlord must request a variance from the Director in writing.
      (d)   Variance request tor multiple properties. A Landlord desiring a variance for more than one property must submit a separate written request for each property.
      (e)   Variance request requirements. The written request for a variance must be submitted to: Department of Housing and Community Affairs, 1401 Rockville Pike, 4th Floor, Rockville, Maryland 20852, Attn: Director. The written request must include the following information:
         (1)   the name, address, phone number, and email address of the Landlord;
         (2)   the rental license number, address or addresses of the multi-family rental housing for which a variance is being requested, and the type and number of windows involved;
         (3)   a detailed reason for the request, including a description of the condition or conditions warranting the request;
         (4)   a photo and/or mechanical drawing of the window or windows for which a variance is being requested depicting the structural issue necessitating the request;
         (5)   a description, and a photo and/or mechanical drawing, of the proposed alternative device; and
         (6)   if the Landlord is requesting the Director’s consideration of a limiting device, the variance request must also include a sample of the alternative device, along with the hardware for installation.
      (f)   Contents of Landlord certification. The written request must include the following certification, signed by the Landlord:
“By submitting and signing this request for a variance under Section 29-35D of the Montgomery County Code, I/we certify that such a variance is necessary due to factors which make compliance with the County’s requirements infeasible. Furthermore, I/we certify that if a variance is approved by the Director, I/we will conduct annual inspections and ongoing monitoring of the device installed to ensure the device’s ongoing integrity and safety.”
      (g)   Director discretion. Approval of a variance request is at the sole discretion of the Director. Approval will be granted only upon a satisfactory finding that a variance is justified and appropriate, and that the granting of a variance will ensure that all safety requirements herein are met.
      (h)   Limitations on variance. If approved, a variance may be granted for a limited period of time. The continued appropriateness of the variance will be subject to review, renewal, or retraction by the Director at the expiration of the prescribed time period. The Director may require documentation from the Landlord supporting the Landlord’s request to continue the variance.
29.35D.02.08 Tenant Notification and Education
      (a)   Current tenant notification. A Landlord must notify current tenants in writing of the tenants’ rights relating to Window Guards, on a form prescribed by the Department, by no later than February 1, 2022. Thereafter, tenants must be notified of their rights at least once annually at the earlier of lease renewal or notice of rent increase. The Landlord must inform tenants that they may request a Window Guard at any time, even if the tenant previously indicated that they did not want a Window Guard.
      (b)   New tenants. New tenants must be notified of their rights relating to Window Guards at the time of lease signing.
      (c)   Delivery of tenant notification. A Landlord may deliver the Window Guard notification by any of these delivery methods: in person, by hand delivery to a unit, or by mailing the notice to the unit. A Landlord must document the date and method of delivery of each notice.
      (d)   Tenant responsibility. A tenant must complete, sign, and date the notification form (tenant-executed notification form) and return it to the Landlord within thirty (30) days of receipt. If the Landlord has not received the tenant-executed notification form from a tenant within the required timeframe, the Landlord must deliver an additional notification to the tenant. The Landlord must document the date and method of delivery for each attempted notice.
      (e)   Removing Window Guards. A Landlord may remove a Window Guard from an unoccupied unit, or upon the written request of a tenant if the unit is not occupied by a child under the age of 11.
(Administrative History: Reg. No. 11-21 (Method 2); Orig. Dept.: Housing and Community Affairs)
COMCOR 29.40.01 Troubled Properties
29.40.01.01 Purpose
   The minimum maintenance standards that apartment complexes and buildings with personal living quarters (“rental housing” or “rental housing properties”) must meet are set forth in Chapter 26 of the Montgomery County Code. When the Department conducts a visual assessment of rental housing for compliance with Chapter 26, any violation of the Chapter 26 standards is noted by the Department without distinction as to the severity of the violation, except those violations cited under Section 26-13 and Section 26-15 of the Code. However, for the purposes of meeting the requirements of Section 29-22(b)(2), the Department categorizes and ranks violations in the order of severity, as outlined in this regulation to determine whether rental housing is to be designated as a Troubled Property.
   This regulation sets forth a methodology for designating Troubled Properties under Section 29-22(b)(2) of the Montgomery County Code based on the severity and quantity of violations of Chapter 26, with rental housing designated as Troubled Properties being subject to annual inspections and the requirement to develop and implement a corrective action plan under Section 29-22(c).
29.40.01.02 Definitions
   Unless defined below, all terms herein have the same meanings as those in Chapter 29 of the Code.
   (a)   Corrective action plan means a written property maintenance plan prepared by the Landlord of a Troubled Property, that describes in detail the specific actions that the Landlord will take within a specified time schedule to both identify and correct current and ongoing housing code violations in a timely manner and prevent future housing code violations to the greatest extent possible.
   (b)   Troubled Property means rental housing which, because of the severity and quantity of violations under Chapter 26, is subject to annual inspections by the Department and requires the development and implementation of a corrective action plan.
29.40.01.03 Classifying Violations by Severity
   (a)   The Department shall maintain and publicize a list of violations (“violations list”) with an assigned level of severity for each violation based on the four categories described below. The violations list may, by Executive Order, be revised periodically for completeness and clarity.
   (b)   Health and Safety Violations. Health and Safety Violations are generally those that present an imminent or immediate risk to tenants including, but not limited to:
      (1)   Those violations listed in Section 29-22(b)(1) of the Code;
      (2)   Violations which cause the Department to exercise the powers delineated in Section 26-13 and Section 26-15 of the Code;
      (3)   Missing, disabled, or non-functioning smoke detectors;
      (4)   Broken entrance doors and/or missing or broken locks;
      (5)   HVAC system not maintaining a temperature of 68 degrees in heating months; or
      (6)   Any other violation designated on the violations list maintained by the Department. Unless the magnitude of a violation necessary to meet the level of a health and safety violation is specified in the Code or regulation, a violation must meet the requirements of Section 26-13(a) of the Code in order to achieve the designation of a health and safety violation.
   (c)   Higher Priority Violations. Higher Priority Violations are generally those that do not present an imminent or immediate risk to tenants’ health or safety, but require more substantial and expensive repairs, including but not limited to:
      (1)   Damage to interior doors and/or door locks;
      (2)   Major wall damage;
      (3)   The limited presence of mold that does not meet the standard set in Section 26-13(a)(3) of the Code;
      (4)   Overcrowding;
      (5)   Infestation not rising to the level established in Section 29-22(b)(1)(a);
      (6)   Non-functioning or inadequately functioning major appliance, such as a refrigerator not cooling, or a stove not heating, to the required temperature;
      (7)   Other damage to windows not related to egress;
      (8)   Missing address indicators; or
      (9)   Any other violation designated on the violations list maintained by the Department.
   (d)   Medium Priority Violations. Medium Priority Violations are generally those related to ongoing maintenance issues including, but not limited to:
      (1)   Poor housekeeping presenting conditions conducive to infestation and/or accidents;
      (2)   Faucet leaks and other non-emergency plumbing repairs;
      (3)   Minor wall and/or tile repairs;
      (4)   Carpet damage;
      (5)   Deteriorated refrigerator gaskets;
      (6)   HVAC system requiring general maintenance; or
      (7)   Any other violation designated on the violations list maintained by the Department.
   (e)   Lower Priority Violations. Lower Priority Violations are generally those of a superficial or cosmetic nature including, but not limited to:
      (1)   Interior walls and ceilings requiring general painting, scraping and preparation;
      (2)   Lights and light covers in need of repairing or replacing;
      (3)   Window blinds in need of repairing or replacing;
      (4)   Broken or damaged toilet seat;
      (5)   Broken or damaged bathroom towel rack and/or toothbrush holder;
      (6)   Bathtub in need of re-glazing and/or repairing grout and caulking; or
      (7)   Any other violation designated on the violations list maintained by the Department.
   (f)   The quantity and severity of violations under each category necessary to designate rental housing as a Troubled Property is set forth in Section 29.40.01.04 of this regulation.
29.40.01.04 Designating Troubled Properties
   (a)   After an inspection of rental housing and based on the inspection findings, the Department shall calculate two scores to be assigned to each rental property based on the following criteria:
      (1)   The severity of the violations found in the rental housing (the Severity of Violations Score, or “SV Score”);
      (2)   The total number of violations found in the rental housing (the Total Number of Violations Score, or “TV Score”).
   (b)   Severity of Violations (“SV”) Score.
      (1)   The Severity of Violations score shall be based on the following point system:
         (i)   Five (5) points for each Health and Safety Violation found;
         (ii)   Three (3) points for each Higher Priority Violation found;
         (iii)   Two (2) points for each Medium Priority Violation found;
         (iv)   One (1) point for each Lower Priority Violation found.
      (2)   The Department will assign the appropriate point value to each violation based on its severity and will add the points together to calculate the total number of points. The Department will then divide this total number of points by the total number of violations found in the Multifamily Dwelling Units inspected to determine an average number representing the Severity of Violations (“SV”) Score for that rental housing.
   (c)   Total Number of Violations (“TV”) Score. The Department will divide the total number of violations found in the rental housing by the total number of Multifamily Dwelling Units inspected to determine an average number of violations per unit which will be the Total Violations (“TV”) Score for that rental housing.
   (d)   On or about July 1, 2019, the Department shall analyze the results of inspections of rental properties that were conducted on or after January 15, 2017 according to the method described below. Thereafter, the Department will conduct this analysis annually for those rental properties inspected within the preceding 12-month period.
   (e)   The SV Score and the TV Score for each rental property shall be plotted as two coordinates on an “X-Y scatter graph” where the X-axis (horizontal) represents the property’s SV Score, and the Y-axis (vertical) represents the property’s TV Score (an illustration of such a graph is provided below).
   (f)   The coordinates for all rental properties shall be plotted on this graph to show the relative position of each rental property in relation to every other rental property based on the quantity and severity of its violations.
   (g)   Additionally, the Department shall calculate the mean TV Score and the mean SV Score for all rental properties. These mean values shall be plotted as points on the X-axis (representing the average severity of all violations across all properties) and the Y-axis (representing the average number of total violations across all properties), respectively.
   (h)   The graph shall then be divided into four quadrants by drawing a line perpendicular to each axis (the “mean line”), beginning at the mean score on each axis and ending at a point parallel to the endpoint of each axis. Each quadrant contains the coordinates of properties with certain characteristics:
      (1)   The northwest quadrant (upper left) represents rental properties with a higher than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively lower level of severity;
      (2)   The northeast quadrant (upper right) represents rental properties with a higher than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively higher level of severity;
      (3)   The southeast quadrant (lower right) represents rental properties with a lower than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively higher level of severity; and,
      (4)   The southwest quadrant (lower left) represents rental properties with a lower than average number of violations, and violations of a relatively lower level of severity (please refer to the illustration below).
   (i)   Those rental properties whose coordinates are located within or touching any boundary of the northeast quadrant shall be designated as Troubled Properties.
   (j)   Those rental properties whose coordinates are located within the northwest or southeast quadrant shall be considered “at-risk” properties commensurate with their coordinates proximity to the northeast quadrant containing Troubled Properties. The Director shall exercise his or her discretion to inspect these properties more frequently than once every three years to monitor the properties and encourage the Landlords to avoid Troubled Properties designation.
   (k)   Within 30 days of the Department’s designation of a rental property as a Troubled Property, the Department shall provide written notice of such designation to the Landlord. The Department may include any supporting documentation deemed necessary to support or explain that designation. The written notice should also include:
      (1)   The date established by the Department of the upcoming annual inspection of all dwelling units in the rental property;
      (2)   The requirement for, and description of, a corrective action plan which must be submitted to the Department prior to the date of the above annual inspection;
      (3)   The requirements of Section 29-22(e), including the requirement to submit quarterly maintenance logs to the Department, effective as of the date of the written notice;
      (4)   The remedies available under Section 29-25 and Section 26-16 of the Code if the Landlord fails to comply with the requirements of all applicable laws.
   (l)   Beginning on or about July 1, 2019, the Department will inspect every Troubled Property at least once within the succeeding 12-month period, as measured from the date all previously identified violations from the most recent inspection of the rental housing complex have been corrected and the case file for that property is closed. So long as a rental housing remains a Troubled Property, the Department will inspect the complex at least once within each succeeding 12-month period until the rental housing is no longer designated as a Troubled Property.
   (m)   Rental housing designated as a Troubled Property may have that designation removed at such time as the Director determines that the corrective action plan for the rental housing has been successfully completed and the property’s SV and TV scores are no longer located in the upper northeast quadrant of the X-Y scatter graph.
(Administrative History: Reg. No. 5-17AM (Method 2); Orig. Dept.: Housing and Community Affairs)
See also COMCOR 29.22.01 Repair and Deduct
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