Week of February 8th to February 12th, 2021 Legislative Update February 12th is the 33rd day of the legislative session and 1,707 bills have been introduced, 29 bills have passed both chambers and five bills have been signed by the Governor. 100 more bills have been introduced this session over last. The City of Scottsdale staff are currently tracking 125 bills that have potential impact to municipal functions. Legislative Action: Monday was the last day for the introduction of bills for this year totaling 1,707 bills. Additional bills will be allowed introduction for completion of the state budget and for extenuating circumstances. Next week will be the last week to hear bills in the committees in the house of origin (House bills in the House, Senate bills in the Senate) with exceptions for Rules and Appropriations committees. We expect to see lengthy committee agendas and long hearings. Scottsdale’s Water Remediation Legislation The City’s water remediation bill, SB 1366, passed both the Senate Rules Committee and its first vote on the Senate floor. We anticipate SB 1366 will receive its final vote in the Senate in the near future. Thus far, the bill has received unanimous support and there is no known opposition. Short-term Rental Legislation Two short-term rental bills have now passed their respective committees. SB 1379, which is viewed as being supported by representatives of the short-term rental industry, and HB 2481 which is supported by local governments. Mayor Ortega testified in support of HB 2481 on Wednesday and the bill passed the House Government & Elections committee with a vote of 8-5. Stakeholder meetings for both bills are expected to occur before additional action on these bills. Legislative Update Overview of Bills SHORT-TERM RENTALS SB 1379 – Vacation Rentals; Short-Term Rentals; Enforcement – Would modify the list of regulations that counties and municipalities are authorized to impose on vacation rentals or short- term rentals to include: • A requirement of the owner to maintain liability insurance in aggregate of at least $500,000 or advertise through a hosting platform that provides equal or greater coverage. • The ability to restrict the occupancy of a short-term rental two adults per bedroom, up to 4 bedrooms, plus two additional adults per 1,000 square feet of livable space in excess of 3,000 square feet. • Allowing counties and municipalities to impose a civil penalty for each day a property is in violation of specified provisions and modifies civil penalties for operators who fail to comply with transaction privilege tax requirements Status: Introduced by Senator J.D. Mesnard (R-Chandler) and an amended version passed in the Commerce committee on February 3rd. Action Taken: Oppose. The provisions of this bill will not provide the necessary relief that the city and its residents need to offset the negative impacts of short- term rentals. HB 2285 – Online Home Sharing; Repeal – Would repeal statutes which forbid municipalities and counties from prohibiting vacation rentals or short-term rentals and limiting the restrictions that municipalities and counties may place on those rentals to a list of specified purposes. Status: Introduced by Representative Aaron Lieberman (D-Paradise Valley) and has been assigned to the Commerce and Government & Election committees but has not been calendared. Recommendation: Support. HB 2481 – Short-Term Rentals; Enforcement; Penalties – Would modify the list of regulations that counties and municipalities are authorized to impose on vacation rentals or short- term rentals to include: • A requirement for the owner of a short-term rental to license or register with the county or municipality. • The ability to restrict the occupancy of a short-term rental to the lesser of the occupancy limit of the county or municipality or two adults per bedroom plus two additional adults. • Prohibiting short-term rentals from advertising to exceed the occupancy limit of the dwelling or for any nonresidential use. • Allowing counties and municipalities to impose a civil penalty for each day a property is in violation of this advertisement prohibition and provides that an online lodging operator that falsifies information to an online lodging marketplace is guilty of a petty offense. Status: Introduced by Representative John Kavanagh (R-Fountain Hills) and passed the House Government & Elections committee on February 10th. Action Taken: Support. Legislative Update DEAD: HB 2482 – Regulation; Short-Term Rentals – Would modify the list of regulations that counties and municipalities are authorized to impose on or short-terms rentals to include: • Requiring contact information for the owner of the rental to be posted on the front door or in another location on the property that is visible and accessible to the public. • Restricting the maximum number of adult occupants allowed on the property at one time to the lesser of the occupancy limit established by the county or municipality or no more than 2 adults per bedroom, up to 4 bedrooms, plus 2 additional adults per 1,000 square feet of livable space in excess of 3,000 square feet of livable space. • Requiring the installation of safety and monitoring equipment that monitors and detects noise and notifies the owner if noise is unreasonable or in violation of a noise ordinance; prohibiting smoking outside within 100 feet of a residential structure; restricting occupants from checking in without the presence of the owner or the owner's designee. • Prohibiting occupants from parking on public or private streets if on-property parking is available. • Short-term rentals cannot advertise to exceed the occupancy limit of the dwelling or for any nonresidential use and are required to display the transaction privilege tax license in any online advertisement for rental of the unit. Establishes penalties for violations. Status: Introduced by Representative John Kavanagh (R-Fountain Hills). HB2482 has been pulled from consideration and is now dead. PUBLIC SAFETY; HEALTH ISSUES SB 1220 – Mental Health Professionals; Trauma Counseling – Expands the definition of “licensed mental health professional” to include mental health professionals who are licensed by the Board of Behavioral Health Examiners and who hold either a master’s or doctoral degree related to the mental health profession, for the purpose of programs which provide peace officers and firefighters with traumatic event counseling. Status: Introduced by Senator Rick Gray (R-Sun City). Amended version passed the Senate on February 4th with a vote of 29-0. Recommendation: Support SB 1373 – Health Facilities; Duty of Care – Licensed health care institutions that provide congregant or residential care and the institution's employees and agents have an affirmative duty of care for their residents. These institutions are required to provide basic life support and first aid, in accordance with that resident's advance directives and do-not-resuscitate order, including initiating immediate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) before the arrival of emergency medical services, to a resident who experiences symptoms of cardiac arrest or cessation of respiration. Staff who are certified in CPR and first aid must be available at the health care institution at all times. These institutions are prohibited from implementing policies that prevent employees from providing immediate CPR, first aid or emergency care to the institution's residents. Status: Introduced by Senator Nancy Barto (R-Phoenix) and passed the Senate Health and Human Services Committee on February 10th. Action Taken: Support Legislative Update SB 1407 – DUI; Incarceration Credits; Calculation – Requires a person who receives time- served credit towards a mandatory term of incarceration for driving under the influence (DUI) to serve at least 12 consecutive hours for each day of credit. Status: Introduced by Senator Warren Petersen (R-Gilbert) and has passed both the Judiciary and Rules committees. Action Taken: Support NEW: SB 1419 – Highway Video Surveillance; Prohibition – Prohibits the state and local governments from conducting "highway video surveillance" on a controlled access highway or on a sidewalk. The bill also requires that a person who suffers an injury because of a violation of this prohibition is entitled to damages of at least $1,000 for each violation, plus costs and reasonable attorney fees. In addition, the bill repeals current statutory authorization and regulations for photo enforcement. As written SB 1419 would effectively make it unlawful to use body cameras and dash cameras on the freeway or when capturing images on sidewalks. It would also make it illegal to use ADOT traffic cameras when attempting to locate vehicles during emergencies such as amber, silver and blue alerts. Status: Introduced by Senator Wendy Rodger (R-LD6) and will be heard in the Senate Transportation & Technology Committee on February 15th. Recommendation: Oppose. SB 1450 – Workers’ Compensation; Special Fund; Firefighters – Allows firefighters eligible for workers’ compensation due to cancer deemed to arise out of employment to be eligible for reimbursement if the claim was filed after January 1, 2017, and if the employer has adopted cancer mitigation best practices. Retroactive to tax years beginning with 2017. Status: Introduced by Senator Paul Boyer (R-Glendale) and has been referred to the Commerce committee but has not been calendared. Recommendation: Support SB 1451 – Workers’ Compensation; Special Fund; Firefighters – Adds fire investigators