2003 House Bill 4081 ↩

House Roll Call 53: Passed

To broaden the scope of the law that authorizes the condemnation and demolition of dangerous buildings. The bill expands the definition of "dangerous building" to include cases where a portion of a building was damaged by deterioration, neglect, abandonment, or vandalism. Current law only includes buildings damaged by fire, wind, flood, and other catastrophic causes in the definition. The law authorizes the demolition of a “dangerous building” by a local government when the estimated cost of repair exceeds the state equalized value (SEV), and allows a local government to seek reimbursement from the owner for the actual demolition costs. The bill would also allow the local government to seek reimbursement for administrative expenses, and establishes in law a rebuttable presumption that the building should be demolished if the repair cost exceeds SEV.