The Board of Health got an earful from landlords on Wednesday about proposed rental regulations that would charge landlords with meeting certain requirements, and charge them fines should they fail to do so.

"We have people living in sheds … and the renters call it a guest house," Wareham Health Agent Bob Ethier said during a public hearing about the proposed regulations. "We have a substandard housing situation in Wareham."

Ethier said the board has fielded more than 400 complaints from tenants over the past two years. He says there are people in Wareham living with no heat, electricity, or water and the Board of Health wants regulations in place to hold landlords responsible for the upkeep of their properties.

The rental regulations are still in draft form, but if approved by the Board of Health, the regulations would require anybody who wishes to rent or lease a property or a portion of a property to register with the board at a cost of $100 per year. Any additional units owned by the same person at the same property would cost another $25 per unit.

The money would be put into a fund that would be capped at $50,000. If the fund exceeds $50,000 in a given year, the additional money will go into the town's general coffers.

The additional revenue would be used to hire an additional health inspector. 

The property owner would receive a certificate of registration, which he or she would be required to renew yearly. Property owners would be prohibited from renting or leasing without a certificate from the board.

Once registered, property owners would be scheduled for a State Sanitary Code Inspection.

If a property owner receives a written notice of violation from the Board of Health, he or she would have 30 days to correct it. Anybody who is found to be in violation of the new regulations would be subject to a $300 fine. Each day that the violation continues could be deemed a separate offense.

Under the State Sanitary Code, landlords are required to provide alternative housing immediately for tenants if a property is shut down on the spot for more severe violations, such as lack of heating. If landlords fail to fix the violations, under state law, they can be subject to $10 to $500 per day in fines.

The main argument coming from the group, who packed the basement of the Town Hall, was that good landlords already provide their tenants with safe, clean dwellings and shouldn't be penalized for the neglect some property owners may show toward their property or tenants.

"I'm kind of upset that I'm busting my butt to make sure my places are clean," said Jeff Tuomala. "One of the things I don't understand is you say you have 450 complaints. … Why weren't these complaints addressed at the time? Why do we need this?"

Ethier tried to assure those in attendance that the board is not trying to unfairly target landlords.

"There's landlords that do a good job," said Ethier. "There's hundreds who aren't."

Landlord Bill Bachant said that sometimes tenants make it difficult for landlords to maintain nice rental units.

"Sometimes within a year that unit is completely destroyed," Bachant explained. "The landlord has no recourse in this state. It's a fallacy. The landlord is screwed from day one."

Resident Richard Post stepped forward to offer his take on the proposed regulations: "It seems to me these regulations are meant to keep honest people honest. The flagrant violators are not going to register with you."

Tuomala said that while he understands the town may not have the manpower to perform as many inspections as they need to, the cost shouldn't fall to the landlords.

"You don't have enough help to do your job," said Tuomala. "And we don't have to pay for it. … We can't afford it."

The board will revisit the regulations at a later date.