Delaware Code Title 25 Sec. 7046 – Delaware Manufactured Home Owner Attorney Fund
(a) The Delaware Manufactured Home Owner Attorney Fund is established through funding provided under § 7042 of this title to provide legal representation and advocacy for manufactured homeowners in disputes with community owners.
Terms Used In Delaware Code Title 25 Sec. 7046
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
- State: means the State of Delaware; and when applied to different parts of the United States, it includes the District of Columbia and the several territories and possessions of the United States. See Delaware Code Title 1 Sec. 302
- Year: means a calendar year, and is equivalent to the words "year of our Lord. See Delaware Code Title 1 Sec. 302
(b) The Department of Justice must enter into a contract, under the requirements of subchapter VI, Chapter 69 of Title 29, for a person to assist and represent manufactured homeowners in disputes with community owners with matters that include all of the following:
(1) Providing educational materials and presentations for manufactured homeowners on their rights as manufactured homeowners.
(2) Forming a homeowners association.
(3) Defending an eviction.
(4) Enforcing a breach of a lease agreement by a community owner.
(5) Remedying the failure of a community owner to maintain communities in a manner consistent with local, state, and federal health and safety rules, regulations, and laws.
(6) Challenging a potentially unenforceable term in a lease agreement.
(7) Challenging a potentially unenforceable community rule.
(8) Challenging a rent increase under subchapter III of this chapter, if all of the following apply:
a. The proposed rent increase is 3% or higher plus the CPI-U as defined in § 7052 of this title.
b. The challenge is requested by either of the following:
1. The homeowners association that represents 25% or more of the homeowners.
2. A simple majority or more of the homeowners who received notice of the proposed rent increase under § 7043 of this title, calculated based on 1 vote for each home that received notice.
(c) Not less than quarterly, the Authority shall issue a voucher to the Division of Revenue directing the Division of Revenue to issue a check to the Department of Justice in the amount of the assessments collected under § 7042(g)(1)d. of this title.
(d) The Department of Justice shall file an annual report with the General Assembly October 1 of each year that shall provide all of the following information as of the end of the prior fiscal year:
(1) The amount in the Attorney Fund.
(2) The amount that was spent in the previous year.
(3) The number of cases the contracted attorney worked on in the previous year.
(4) The number of manufactured homeowners who were represented by the contracted attorney in the previous year.