Oregon Supreme Court pipes up on RV sewage dispute

SALEM, Ore. (CN) — In a mixed ruling on Thursday, the Oregon Supreme Court found that even though a landlord neglected his legal obligation to provide a sewage disposal system for the RV site on his land, he was allowed to evict his tenant for dumping her sewage on the ground.

“In some respects, landlord and tenant were both responsible for causing the sewage problem,” Justice Stephen Bushong wrote. “Landlord was responsible because he did not provide an essential service — an appropriate sewage disposal system — for the site. Tenant was responsible because she did not cap the wastewater discharge port on her RV and continued to dump raw sewage onto the ground.”

Under the Oregon Residential Landlord Tenant Act, landlords must keep all dwellings in a habitable condition, including by providing waste disposal. Tenants are also required to keep the premises clean and sanitary.

“Again, the [Oregon Residential Landlord Tenant Act] gave tenant some options to address landlord’s failure, but continuing to dump raw sewage onto the ground was not one of them,” Bushong wrote.

Katie Harmon signed a lease to rent space on Greg Jared’s farm in Umatilla County to park her RV until late 2022. Harmon had access to water and electricity through a cattle wellhouse situated on the agricultural land, but there wasn’t a septic system on the property. The lease included checked boxes indicating both that sewage would be “paid by landlord” and included in the $400 per month rent and that sewage would be “paid by the tenant.”

Harmon connected her RV’s septic line to a black pipe that discharged raw sewage onto the ground and into bushes about 50 feet from the RV. Harmon testified that she called the health department after discovering the sewage was being dumped onto the ground. After inspecting the site, the health department fined the landlord, and the landlord served the tenant with a lease termination notice demanding that she fix the sewage issue or leave the property.

Both the trial court and the appeals court sided with Jared, including on both Harmon’s counterclaims accusing Jared of breaching his obligations to provide a sewage disposal system and to provide safe drinking water.

While the Supreme Court agreed that Jared had a right to regain possession of the premises, it disagreed on the counterclaim that Jared had failed to provide a sewage system. Under the Oregon Residential Landlord Tenant Act, a tenant can recover damages for a landlord’s failure to keep the premises in a habitable condition as long as the landlord was aware of the issue.

Harmon didn’t inform Jared about the sewage discharge and drinking water problems, but the court found that Jared “knew all along that the rented space did not have any sewage disposal system.”

“It follows that tenant was entitled to recover damages on her first counterclaim under ORS 90.360(2) for landlord’s failure to comply with that habitability requirement,” Bushong wrote.

But since Harmon never informed Jared about the issue with the drinking water, she is not entitled to damages, the court determined.

The Oregon Law Center, which represented Harmon, said it was encouraged by the court’s recognition of habitability standards.

“We’re pleased that the Oregon Supreme Court has affirmed a landlord’s obligation to meet basic habitability requirements for all tenancies, including rental spaces for RVs,” the Oregon Law Center said in an email. “We also appreciate the court’s acknowledgment that a landlord’s failure to maintain habitability creates liability for damages as a matter of law.”

Jared’s attorney Nick Blanc said he was happy with the Supreme Court’s decision, but said it highlights the need for the state Legislature to address situations where private landowners rent space on their property to a single RV. Landowners must have a sewage disposal system on their property to comply with habitability requirements.

“I am sure that there are countless landowners who are in this same situation who have no idea that they are violating the law,” Blanc said in an email. “Without the legislature addressing this situation, I am afraid we are decreasing the amount of viable housing available, especially for those who are occupying an RV as their primary residence.”

In a concurring opinion, Justice Aruna Masih noted that the alternatives the majority suggested for Harmon to dispose of sewage, instead of dumping it on the ground, are not accessible to every tenant.

The majority suggested Harmon could have stored her raw sewage for off-site disposal, paid for a disposal service and deducted the cost from the rent or terminated her lease.

“Not every tenant will have the reasonable ability, whether due to financial or other circumstances, to pursue any of those remedies,” Masih wrote. “And in my view, the [Oregon Residential Landlord Tenant Act] does not require a tenant to do so as part of their duties.”

The Supreme Court heard arguments on the matter in May.