Citing public safety concerns, the B.C. government says it will examine the possibility of exempting all supportive housing units from the regulations of the Residential Tenancy Act.
In January last year, the province amended the Act, which guarantees certain legal rights for both landlords and tenants, allowing supportive housing operators to implement restrictive guest policies and conduct wellness checks.
Housing Minister Ravi Kahlon announced Monday that the province is now looking at removing the protections provided under the Act from supportive housing entirely.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO 1130 NEWSRADIO VANCOUVER LIVE!The ministry says the change could allow supportive housing providers “to take quick and decisive action against problematic tenants and guests, and address air-quality issues related to second-hand exposure to fentanyl.”
The province says WorkSafeBC recently conducted tests in 14 buildings in Victoria and Vancouver, showing “some areas of supportive housing are more likely to have elevated levels of airborne fentanyl, above the limit WorkSafeBC has established.”
He says the BC Centre for Disease Control hasn’t confirmed any cases of people dying of an overdose from secondhand fentanyl smoke, but elevated levels could require more precautions.
“It does show that we need to have additional measures in these locations, air purifiers, perhaps, policies where people wear PPE when they enter their rooms, out of abundance of caution… It’s something that all communities around North America are dealing with, especially as we see the shift to people smoking fentanyl as opposed to injecting it,” said Kahlon.
The province also cited the ability to respond faster to weapons, criminal activity, and “dangerous individuals” who might threaten other vulnerable tenants.
“We have heard from providers that they need more authority to take action and keep people safe, and we will be working with our partners to find a path forward that ensures people can live in a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment,” said Kahlon.
The ministry says it will put together a working group composed of supportive housing providers, law enforcement, union representatives, and government and BC Housing staff.
Kahlon announced the working group and its intentions at a media event Monday afternoon.
He says it’s not entirely clear what the result will be and declined to rule out the possibility that supportive housing would fall under its own set of regulations in a new act.
Kahlon says he’s heard from people who feel the existing regulations are enough, and he would accept the possibility that the change doesn’t go forward.
“We are open to whatever measures are needed to keep everyone safe: workers, people living there in the community. And I’m hoping the working group will give us some good suggestions on how to move,” said Kahlon.
The minister says he does not think the change would be used to unfairly evict people from supportive housing but rather to help target a “small number of individuals” who he says would be better served by the province’s recent initiative to expand complex care beds.
The potential change would affect thousands of people, including those living in the approximately 8,000 supportive housing units in Vancouver alone.
“Many of those individuals, they follow the rules. There’s no issues. But we have a small percentage of them that cause the majority of the challenges, and we need to address that, and that’s what this working group will focus on.”
Kahlon says he anticipates results from the working group in September or October.
You can watch CityNews 24/7 live or listen live to 1130 NewsRadio Vancouver to keep up to date with this story. You can also subscribe to breaking news alerts sent directly to your inbox.