Commercial Tenant Protections
To help small businesses through the pandemic, the City passed an emergency ordinance banning commercial evictions for non-payment of rent between the months of April 2020-September 2020.
It temporarily prohibited landlords from evicting nonprofit and small business tenants when:
The tenant is unable to pay their rent because they have been impacted by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic; or
The landlord seeks to terminate the tenancy for “no fault” causes, unless the eviction is necessary to preserve the health and safety of tenants, neighbors, or the landlord.
Repayment period
Starting the month when the City’s State of Emergency is lifted, tenants will have a 12-month period to pay rent arrears culminated between April – September 2020. On the seventh month of the 12-month repayment period, tenants must start paying a minimum of 50% percent of the unpaid balance. Landlords are not allowed to charge late fees or surcharges to the outstanding balance.
Visit our FAQ page for more information.
New Cap on Delivery Fees
The fees delivery services can charge local restaurants and businesses are now capped after the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors on Nov. 17 approved an emergency regulation.
The new rule caps commissions and fees charged by third-party food deliver services such as Uber Eats, Grubhub, and Doordash to all restaurants in San Mateo County until June 30, 2021 or the end of the local emergency due to COVID-19. The regulation caps delivery fees at 15% of the cost of an order and non-deliveries at 10% per order. There is also a provision that the Delivery Service Platform cannot make up the difference from reducing the gratuity made to the driver.
Read a press release for more information. You can also read the County’s full ordinance here.