MMMMMEM THE MICHfiGAN DA1LY Frida , March- 22, 1-914 SEaiment? Rent control splits electorate; IBERWOCKY issue causes sharp disputes (Continued from Page 1) The lawyer would represent the diate families over the past three board in any legal tests the legal- years. ity of rent control in the city and BOARD MEMBERS will be al- lowed to serve only two consecu-1 tive terms and will be prohibited from running for any elective of- fice while serving on the Board. Board members will be elected by proportional representation, with each political party getting a number of seats on the Board cor- responding to their share of the vote in the board election. Parties would file slates, and board mem- bers would be elected city-wide instead of by wards. Supporters of proportional repre-' sentation claim it is fairer, since all the voters of one political per- suasion can't be lumped into one ward, thus dilating their power. THE BOARD would have full jurisdiction over rents in the city. The board would set rents, create3 regualtions for enforcement, hire and fire employes, and retain a full-time attorney. The boardrwould also have the power to recom- mend legislation to City Council which it deemed necessary to aug- merit the original amendment. Daily Photo by KEN FINK Drought described Ambassador T. Yaguibou, representative from Upper Volta to the United States and the United Nations, waits outside an Angell Hall classroom yesterday. Yaguibou described the social and economic impact of the catastrophic African drought to University students. would also prosecute any cases against. landlords resulting from noncompliance with board direc- tives. The board would be required toI meet at least once a month, and, meetings must be open to the pub-. lic. Transcripts, and all other re-; cords and documents of the board would also be accessible to the public. BOARD MEMBERS would re-' ceive compensation from the city at $3.50 an hour, with a maxi-! mum possible salary of $4,800 yearly. According to those who drafted the legislation, board work is expected to require about 25-30 hours per week, although it could become a "full-time job for some- one ambitious." Since there is no present Rent Control Board, the City Adminis- trator would be directed to appoint an interim Board to serve until the next municipal, elections in 1975. Members would be appointed according to the percentage of votes their party received in the 1974 elections. If rent control passes, around June 1 landlords will be given 30. days to file information pertinent' to determination of operating ex- penses and taxes. Landlords will be charged a $15 filing fee per: rental unit. A total of $200,000 of revenue is expected, an amount which would finance the activities of the Board. THE FILING of expense and profit statements may be among the most important aspects of the new law, since it would end the mystery surrounding the actual profits of city landlords. At pres- ent, the subject is clouded by a lack of information. About Aug. 1, the board would: authorize rent rollbacks to 1972-73 levels or let them remain at pres- ent levels, whichever is less, until a final determination of appro- priate rent could be made. If a landlord fails to file infor- mation on units, he first receives a seven day late notice. If he is still delinquent, the Board then sets the rent at zero for that / o... CRITICS OF the proposal con- tend that the zero.rent is a depri- vation of due process of law, but HRP claims the harshness the measure is necessa r"or enc ce- ment. They also point that the landlords can extricatthemselves from the jam by complying with the Board's request f r informa- tion. Subsequently the B*rd would set a "fair rent," using a formula which allows the landlord all oper- ating costs, plus 50 per cent of all maintenance costs and 2 per cent of all capital improvements as profit. The capital improvement profit carries on for five years. The 50 per cent of maintenance is supposed to be an incentive to keep up property, as is the capital improvement credit. THE OPERATING costs include: -full maintenance fees; -management fees up to 6 per cent; -property taxes; -capital improvements, and; -repayment on the mortgage, plus up to 8 per cent of the in- terest on the mortgage. Management fees above 6 per cent are disallowed as excessive, as are mortgage interest above 8 per cent, and depreciation. Depre- ciation is disallowed on the theory that age does not determine value, whereas ability to produce revenue does, and in the absence tf new housing, old housing makes as much money as new. The other measures are designed to shift the burden of inflation back onto landlords. THE BASIC intent of the HRP- backed rent control proposal is to create a stop-gap measure. HRP admits that rent control is only short term, and that publicly sub- sidized housing is the only final solution, since the private sector has failed to build any housing in the central city area in the last several years. Another intent of the proposal is to take tax advantages away from the landlords and ease the burden for tenants. Every part of the pro- posal is designed to protect the tenant's rights, since landlords have a number of built-in advant- ages, HRP says. City tenants pay rents which are the second highest in the nation and also spend a greater percent- age of their income on rent than the national average. One immedi- ate purpose of rent control is to make rents more reasonable. BUT THERE are serious' prob- lems with the proposal. It does not provide incentives for more build- ing, and in the long run, the total supply of housing is likely to de- cline, since houses now being rent- ed profitably may be sold for use as single-family dwellings. This important issue has gener- ated much controversy this year, and many harsh words. Two in- terest groups have entered the campaign in addition to the tradi- tional political parties and candi- dates. Sursley Hall Enterprises Presents DIANA ROSS in SATURDAY, MARCH 23, NEW TIME:'8 P.M.-Adm. $1 BURSLEY W. CAFETERIA Get toknowthe two of you before ybecome the three oyou. Get to know what you both really like. What you both really want out of life. Get to enjoy your freedom together until you both decide you want to let go of a little bit of it. But make it your choice. Research statistics show that more than half of all the pregnancies each year are accidental. Too many of them, to couples who thought they knew all about family planning methods. 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