provisions of this act conflict with the application of such other provisions, this act shall prevail. That seems to supersede everything else. This is section 27 of the bill. We want to be careful about it. (Reports of the Commissioners and of the Office of Corporation Counsel subsequently submitted, follow:) GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, Hon. JOHN L. MCMILLAN, Chairman, Committee on the District of Columbia, Washington, D.C. EXECUTIVE OFFICE, Washington, May 6, 1963. MY DEAR MR. MCMILLAN: The Commissioners of the District of Columbia have for report H.R. 4276, a bill "To provide for the creation of horizontal property regimes in the District of Columbia." The purpose of this bill is to establish within the District of Columbia a new estate in property, known as condominium. The bill defines "condominium" as "the ownership of single units in a multiunit structure with common elements." The multiunit structure, which may be designed for residence, office, the operation of any industry or business, or for any other type of use, with its accessory units is known as the horizontal property regime or condominium project. Under the bill, persons would be enabled to purchase, convey, lease, and encumber units in a building in the same manner as other real property and purchasers would be entitled to deeds conveying the units to them along with an undivided share in the common elements of the building, such as the corridors, stairways, basements, roofs, heating and air-conditioning plants, and all elements of common use. The maintenance of the common elements of the building in a horizontal property regime would be vested in a council of the coowners, a majority of which would be empowered to make assessments on each unit owner for this purpose. The bill provides that a plat of subdivision setting out the units of the regime shall be deposited in the Office of the Surveyor of the District of Columbia in order to create the condominium project. This project or regime may be terminated by the will of all of the coowners certified on the plat of condominium subdivision. The Commissioners are informed that this legislation is sponsored by the District of Columbia Bar Association and is favored by several real estate associations in the Washington area. The Commissioners understand that the purpose of this bill is to facilitate property ownership by utilizing space for multiunit dwellings to the fullest in the District of Columbia. The Commissioners are also informed that similar legislation has recently been enacted in a number of States, including Maryland, and that in Puerto Rico condominiums have been established for many years. Although the Commissioners favor the principle of the establishment of horizontal property regimes they cannot endorse the bill in its present form A study of H.R. 4276 indicates that many areas of enforcement of the laws of the District of Columbia would be affected by its passage. Although a State statute worded similarly to this bill might be sufficient to enable the establishment of this type of property ownership within the State, the District of Columbia, possessing as it does, the attributes of a municipality as well as a State government has unique problems in this area. For example, by acts of Congress, the government of the District of Columbia is obligated to furnish to its residents sewer and water services. In the event of nonpayment of charges for these services, water may be cut off and the charge may become a lien against the property. Similar provisions are made for collection by the District of special assessments for construction and repair of sidewalks, alleys, curbs and gutters, and sewers and water mains; for the abatement of nuisances on private property and repair or demolition of unsafe and insanitary buildings. The Commissioners believe that the bill is deficient in that it imposes no legal responsibility on the coowners of the horizontal property regime to comply with the various laws and regulations of the District of Columbia as they are now applicable to individual owners of like type structures. There is no provision in the bill making the council of coowners or its agent responsible for the payment of bills for sewer and water charges for the building or that anyone be legally responsible for the maintenance of the common elements of the building in compliance with the laws and regulations in force in the District of Columbia. The council is not held liable for the payment of claims made by the District or private parties against the regime as a whole. There is no provision that, when a regime is terminated, the council remain in being and maintain an agent for purposes of suit arising out of the operation of the regime. There are other problems relating to the general assessment of taxes, special assessments, and the imposition of charges for various governmental services against individual unit owners and the council of coowners as a whole, must be resolved. Therefore, the Commissioners ask that action on the bill be deferred until such time as the Commissioners have had an opportunity to study the operation of this type of property ownership in other municipalities and in the light of that experience to draft suitable amendments to insure that condominiums can be brought into compliance with the laws and regulations in effect in the District of Columbia. Time does not permit seeking the views of the Bureau of the Budget as to the relationship of this report to the program of the administration. Very sincerely yours, WALTER N. TOBRINER, President, Board of Commissioners, District of Columbia. GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF Columbia, Hon. GEORGE HUDDLESTON, Jr., Chairman, Subcommittee No. 5, Committee on the District of Columbia, MY DEAR MR. HUDDLESTON: Reference is made to H.R. 4276, a bill to provide for the creation of horizontal property regimes in the District of Columbia, which was the subject of a hearing before Subcommittee No. 5 of the House District Committee on May 6, 1963. At the time of the hearing I reported on behalf of the Commissioners that while they favored the principle of the establishement of horizontal property regimes in the District of Columbia, they were not able to endorse the bill in its then present form; also that they believed that the bill had some deficiencies in respect to imposing legal responsibility on the coowners of the horizontal property regimes to comply with District of Columbia laws and regulations applicable to individual owners of structures of a similar type. We were not then able to make specific recommendations for amendment of the bill. There is enclosed a copy of a letter dated July 11 which the Commissioners sent to the Senate District Committee regarding H.R. 4276, recommending favorable action thereon with amendments. It is hoped that these amendments will be acceptable to members of the subcommittee and of the full committee. If further information in regard to these matters is desired, I shall be very happy to undertake to obtain the information for you. For your further information, copies of this report have been furnished to Hon. Godfrey L. Munter, the Board of Trade, and others interested in the passage of the bill. Sincerely yours, IRVING BRYAN, Assistant Corporation Counsel, District of Columbia, GOVERNMENT OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, EXECUTIVE OFFICE, Washington, July 11, 1963. Hon. ALAN BIBLE, Chairman, Committee on the District of Columbia, MY DEAR SENATOR BIBLE: The Commissioners of the District of Columbia have for report H.R. 4276, a bill to provide for the creation of horizontal property regimes in the District of Columbia, as passed by the House of Representatives on May 13, 1963. The purpose of this bill is to establish within the District of Columbia a new estate in property, known as condominium. The bill defines "condominium" as "the ownership of single units in a multiunit structure with common elements." The multiunit structure, which may be designed for residence, office, the operation of any industry or business, or for any other type of use, with its accessory units is known as the horizontal preporty regime or condominium project. Under the bill, persons would be enabled to purchase, convey, lease, and encumber units in a building in the same manner as other real property and purchasers would be entitled to deeds conveying the units to them along with an undivided share in the common elements of the building, such as the corridors, stairways, basements, roofs, heating and air-conditioning plants, and all elements of common use. The maintenance of the common elements of the building in a horizontal property regime would be vested in a council of the coowners, a majority of which would be empowered to make assessments on each unit owner for this purpose. The bill provides that a plat of subdivision setting out the units of the regime shall be deposited in the Office of the Surveyor of the District of Columbia in order to create the condominium project. This project or regime may be terminated by the will of all of the coowners certified on the plat of condominium subdivision. The Commissioners are informed that this legislation is sponsored by the District of Columbia Bar Association and is favored by several real estate associations in the Washington area. The Commissioners understand that the purpose of this bill is to facilitate property ownership by utilizing space for multiunit dwellings to the fullest in the District of Columbia. The Commissioners are also informed that similar legislation has recently been enacted in a number of States, including Maryland and Virginia, and that in Puerto Rico condominiums have been established for several years. Although the Commissioners favor the principle of the establishment of horizontal property regimes they cannot endorse the bill in its present form. A study of H.R. 4276 indicates that many areas of enforcement of the laws of the District of Columbia would be affected by its passage. Although a State statute worded similarly to this bill might be sufficient to enable the establishment of this type of property ownership within the State, the District of Columbia, possessing as it does, the attributes of a municipality as well as a State government, has unique problems in this area. For example, by acts of Congress, the government of the District of Columbia is obligated to furnish to its residents sewer and water services. In the event of nonpayment of charges for these services, water may be cut off and the charge may become a lien against the property. Similar provisions are made for collection by the District of special assessments for construction and repair of sidewalks, alleys, curbs and gutters, and sewers and water mains, for the abatement of nuisances on private property and repair or demolition of unsafe and insanitary buildings. The Commissioners believe that the bill is deficient in that it imposes no legal responsibility on the coowners of the horizontal property regime to comply with the various laws and regulations of the District of Columbia as they are now applicable to individual owners of like type structures. There is no provision in the bill making the council of coowners or its agent responsible for the payment of bills for sewer and water charges for the building or that anyone be legally responsible for the maintenance of the common elements of the building in compliance with the laws and regulations in force in the District of Columbia. In addition, the right of the government of the District of Columbia to enforce judgments against the individual unit owners is not adequately safeguarded by the provisions of the bill. The purpose of the following amendments which the Commissioners propose in this report is to clarify the obligations of condominium owners in these and related respects concerning the enforcement of laws and regulations of the District of Columbia relating to property. Initially, it is recommended that the section headings be incorporated in a table of contents in the first section of the bill and that the paragraphs and subparagraphs under all sections be lettered and numbered respectively. The following specific changes are also recommended: 1. Page 3, line 21, insert after "garbage" the following: "and trash". 2. Page 7, line 6, insert "the" before "whole". 3. Page 7, line 22, insert the following before the period: "and a right of entry to officers, agents, and employees of the Government of the United States and the government of the District of Columbia acting in the performance of their official duties". 4. Page 15, line 2, add the following: "To be valid such termination shall be recorded in the land records of the District of Columbia.", 5. Page 18, line 20, insert the following before the period: ": Provided, That for purposes of the application of the District of Columbia Income and Franchise Tax Act of 1947, as amended (Act of July 16, 1947, 61 Stat. 331), the council of coowners shall be regarded as constituting an unincorporated business and shall file returns and pay taxes upon the taxable income derived from the common areas in accordance with the provisions of said Act without regard to the 'common profits' as defined in this Act". 6. Page 19, line 20, amend paragraph (a) to read as follows: "(a) Real estate taxes, other taxes arising out of or resulting from the ownership, use, or operation of the common areas, special assessments for public improvements, including, but not limited to, sewer and water mains, curbs and gutters, sidewalks and alleys, special assessments levied in connection with condemnation proceedings instituted by the District of Columbia, removal of nuisances, water charges and sanitary sewer service charges levied on the condominium unit, and judgments against any and all coowners obtained by or on behalf of the District of Columbia, and,". 7. Page 22, amend lines 10 and 11 to read as follows: "*** to and a junior lien to liens for special assessments for public improvements, including but not limited to, sewer and water mains, curbs and gutters, sidewalks and alleys, special assessments levied in connection with condemnation proceedings instituted by the District of Columbia, removal of nuisances, water charges and sanitary sewer service charges, then or thereafter accruing against the unit and the percentage interest in the common elements, liens for real estate taxes and liens for other taxes arising out of or resulting from the ownership, use or operation of the common elements then or thereafter accruing against the". 8. Page 24, line 7, insert the following before the period: ", subject to all provisions of law and regulations of the District of Columbia then in effect". 9. Page 25, amend lines 6 to 21 to read as follows: "Each of said condominium units shall be carried on the records of the District of Columbia as a separate and distinct entity and all real estate taxes, special assessments for public improvements, including, but not limited to, sewer and water mains, curbs and gutters, sidewalks and alleys, special assessments levied in connection with condemnation proceedings instituted by the District of Columbia, removal of nuisances, water charges and sanitary sewer service charges shall be assessed, levied, and collected against each of said several separate and distinct units in conformity with the percentages of coownership established by section 6 of this Act, and in accordance with the provisions of law in effect in the District of Columbia relating to assessment, levying and collection of real property taxes. "The council of coowners shall be liable for the filing of returns and payment of the tax on personal property located in the common areas and held for use or used in a trade or business or held for sale or rent. "No forfeiture or sale of the improvements or the real estate as a whole for delinquent real estates taxes, special assessments for public improvements, including, but not limited to, sewer and water mains, curbs and gutters, sidewalks and alleys, special assessments levied in connection with condemnation proceedings instituted by the District of Columbia, removal of nuisances, water charges and sanitary sewer service charges, shall ever divest or in anywise affect the title to an individual condominium unit so long as the real estate taxes and duly levied share of special assessments and charges on or against said individual condominium unit are currently paid." 10. Page 28, line 25, amend section 26 to read as follows: "SEC. 26. REGULATIONS OF THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS AND THE ZONING COMMISSION. In order to bring horizontal property regimes into compliance with the laws and regulations in effect in the District of Columbia, the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia and the Zoning Commission of the District of Columbia are each herby authorized to adopt and enforce such regulations as either deems proper, within its respective general authority." 11. Page 30, line 1, is amended to read as follows: "application of such other provisions, the provisions of law generally applicable to buildings in like use in the District of Columbia shall prevail." 12. Page 30, add the following new sections: "SEC. 29. INTERPRETATION. (a) This Act shall be interpreted in such a manner as to require each condominium unit and each horizontal property regime to be in compliance with all District of Columbia laws and regulations relating to property of like type, whether it be designed for residence, for office, for the operation of any industry or business, or for any other use. The owner of each condominium unit shall be responsible for the compliance of his unit with such laws and regulations, and the council of coowners and any person designated by them to manage the regime shall be jointly and severally liable for compliance with all such laws and regulations in all matters relating to the common elements of the regime. "(b) Notwithstanding any provision of this Act, the owner of each condominium unit shall have the same responsibility for the payment of all taxes, assessments, and other charges due to the District of Columbia as does any other person or property owner similarly situated. "(c) Notwithstanding any provision of this Act, the method of enforcement available to the District of Columbia to collect any tax or assessment or any charge from any individual property owner or any building owner shall be available to collect taxes, assessments, and charges from individual condominium unit owners and from the council of coowners. "(d) Nothing contained in this Act shall in any way be construed as affecting the right to institute and maintain eminent domain proceedings. "SEC. 30. SUPPLEMENTAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO SEWER AND WATER SERVICES. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of this Act, the developer or coowners of any horizontal property regime shall have the right to have installed for each and every individual unit a separately metered water service. Such installations shall be subject to all laws and regulations then or thereafter in effect in the District of Columbia. Upon the establishment of such separate water services each unit owner and his successor in title and persons occupying such units shall be responsible for the payment to the District of Columbia of all water and sewer charges rendered and the Commissioners of the District of Columbia are authorized to enforce any and all of the remedies for collection of such charges as are authorized by law. "(b) A common water service is hereby expressly authorized for any horizontal property regime and in the event that a horizontal property regime is provided with a common water service the charges for sewer and water service shall be billed to the person designated by the coowners, pursuant to the bylaws, to manage the regime. In the event that the entire sewer and water charges are not paid within the time specified by law for the payment of sewer and water charges, the Commissioners shall be authorized to enforce payment in any manner authorized by law, including, but not limited to, the assessment of an additional charge for late payment, the shutting off of water to the regime and the enforcement of the liens for nonpayment of such charges, against the individual units in conformity with the percentage of coownership established by section 6 of this Act. "SEC. 31. Nothing in this Act or in any amendments made by this Act shall be construed so as to affect the authority vested in the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia by Reorganization Plan Numbered 5 of 1952 (66 Stat. 824). The performance of any function vested by this Act in the Board of Commissioners or in any office or agency under the jurisdiction and control of said Board of Commissioners may be delegated by said Board of Commissioners in accordance with section 3 of such plan. "SEC. 32. EFFECTIVE DATE.-This Act shall take effect 120 days after its enactment." With these recommended amendments, the Commissioners favor the enactment of this legislation. The Commissioners have been advised by the Bureau of the Budget that, from the standpoint of the administration's program, there is no objection to the submission of this report to the Congress. Very sincerely yours, JOHN B. DUNCAN, Acting President, Board of Commissioners, District of Columbia. Mr. SCHWENGEL. You have not been very careful up to now. You have had 2 months to study it. Did you have reason to believe that this was not going to be considered by the committee? Mr. BRYAN. No, that was not at all, sir. As I said before, while I am not offering this as any excuse, the Commissioners and the staff have been quite busy on crime bills, financing and revenue bills, and quite a number of other bills, including home rule bills and a few other things. Mr. HUDDLESTON. Any other questions, Mr. Schwengel? |