Steering Your Business Clear of Collisions

Some days you’re the windshield. Some days you’re the bug.

You probably can’t keep up with them by yourself. The proposals come fast and furious: Vacant Structure Ordinance, Nuisance Ordinance, Rental Registry, Section 8, Criminal Background Checks, etc.. People who have never met you are trying to have a say in your business. If you want to affect the outcome of potential government regulations by yourself, you’re likely to feel like the bug. The good news is that the Central IL Apartment Association and the IL Rental Property Owners Association (I.R.P.O.A.) (http://bit.ly/c2trL9) are working together and with other interest groups to monitor government ordinances and advocate for and with you.

In some cases, the issue a governmental body is trying to solve has merit. However, the language being proposed is either too broad or in application could be too restrictive to effective business practices. For example, the Champaign City Council is considering an ordinance to address vacant buildings (http://bit.ly/a1z9XX) whose owners are ignoring city notices that their buildings are in violation of city property codes. Some of these buildings pose fire risks, are a blight to the city and can be a center for criminal activity. The concern is understandable. City officials report current enforcement rules to be insufficient and cumbersome.

The trouble is that the ordinance as submitted to the City Council for study could conceivably ensnare all private property in the city limits. In the last version of this ordinance a consequence of being named a nuisance property was that it must be brought up to full compliance with all codes before it can be removed from the list. The C.I.A.A., in cooperation with Champaign County Chamber of Commerce (C.C.C.C.) (http://bit.ly/a9m5xW) and the Champaign County Association of REALTORS® (http://bit.ly/9yXfI5) successfully lobbied to send this back to staff so language could be clarified. “Working with the Central Illinois Apartment Association was a great partnership,” says Andrew Proctor, Public Policy Manager for the C.C.C.C.. “Their knowledge base about residential matters was very helpful in crafting our message to lawmakers.”

In many cases, the legislation shows little regard for our industry. Recently a State Senator began advancing legislation requiring property owners and managers in Cook County to identify to the court the number and ages of children and seniors, as well as any disabled individuals, at time of eviction proceedings (http://bit.ly/byKGk3). According to Paul Arena, Political Action Committee Chair for I.R.P.O.A., Rockford Apartment Association president (http://bit.ly/8Z8jGP) as well as property owner and manager for over 20 years, “There are other people out there who are active and moving their agendas forward and unless we are active the legislators aren’t going to know about our concerns and how we are impacted.” Many citizens outside of our business don’t stop to think that we must respect and be sensible about protecting our clients’ personal information. Arena and others managed to have this bill pushed back for consideration in the fall session.

We’ve had successes on your behalf, and we need your help. Arena says effectiveness comes from making our voices heard. “Our group is based on grassroots participation of the members. It is very important they make contact with the people they vote for so that when an issue arises they can make a phone call and be recognized.” Proctor adds “If you just want to sit back and let the next guy worry about it, probably nothing is going to happen.”

When it comes to regulation, we have some choices. If we decide we want our businesses to be more like the windshield than the bug we can behave like professionals, lessening the need for outside intervention. After that, we can be engaged in the process so that laws that are passed have purpose and are best for us and our residents.