California Apartment Ass'n v. City of Stockton
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Blease, J.
Plaintiffs California Apartment Association and San Joaquin County Property Owners Association appeal from an order denying their petition for a writ of mandate to compel the City of Stockton (Stockton) and named respondents to comply with Public Utilities Code section 10009.6.
Section 10009.6 prohibits a municipal corporation which owns or operates a public utility 2 from recovering from a residential property owner or subsequent tenant the overdue amounts for utility services provided a previous tenant under an account in that tenant’s name.
Stockton has enacted ordinances which conflict with section 10009.6. Stockton claims the section is inapplicable to it as a charter city or, if applicable, is superseded by the ordinances which it claims are within the municipal affairs provisions of California Constitution, article XI, section 5.
We will conclude that section 10009.6 is applicable to charter cities. The statutory term “municipal corporation” includes charter cities. We also conclude that section 10009.6 is not preempted as a municipal affair because it is within the paramount authority of the Legislature respecting public utilities under article XII.