Opinion: The resilience of Hispanic entrepreneurs

UNREPENTANT TENANT from Page 8

which usually gave tenants the right to withhold rent if landlords refused to make repairs in a timely manner, or at all. at basic right was consistently opposed by the landlord’s lobby (Colorado Apartment Association, CAA, which fought virtually any proposed tenant protection for decades) and languished. After much e ort, a weak version of the WOH nally passed in 2009. Colorado Revised Statute 38-12-503 states, “In every rental agreement, the landlord is deemed to warrant that the residential premises is t for human habitation.” But the ability of tenants to use that right was complicated, rarely used and not widely known. E orts made to strengthen it over the years were always opposed by the usual suspects.

An amended version nally passed and took e ect in 2019 (over the objections of the CAA), and became easier to use. e Colorado Homes for All Coalition (working to repeal the statewide ban on rent control) worked with the Colorado Poverty Law Center (CPLC) lobbying for those WOH improvements. While it’s still not ready for prime time, the warranty of habitability is still the best protection tenants have right now, especially for those tenants with weak or non-existent housing codes.

Spencer Bailey, housing advocate attorney with the CPLC, says Colorado was one of the last states to pass a WOH, and it still needs work. He agrees it continues to be risky and complicated to withhold rent without talking to an attorney (or other tenant service). “Post 2019, a tenant has a very limited mechanism to withhold rent, and tenants often don’t know how to follow the steps,” Bailey says.

It should be noted that while the WOH gives tenants the right to withhold rent—or, in severe cases of

uninhabitability, move out (known as constructive eviction)— it ain’t easy. ere are certain steps—written notice, speci c timelines that need to be followed—and failure to do all those in just the right way could end up signi cantly costing the tenant. So, if you have a repair or maintenance issue, what should you do? e type and extent of repair may well determine what can be done. Also, check your lease to see who’s responsible for repairs, but beware of illegal clauses. For instance, you can’t waive your rights under the WOH, regardless of what the lease says. Common sense dictates the rst step: Talk to the manager/owner of your unit to get repairs. It’s best to give them a “POST 2019, A dated, written request with TENANT has a very speci cs, keep a copy and ask limited mechanism to without rent, and tenants often don’t how long they expect repairs to be made. know how to follow the If you’re in the city of Boulsteps.” — Spencer Bailey, der, consult the housing advocacy attorney Landlord-Tenant Handbook. It with the Colorado Poverty has an extensive Law Center section on what is covered, who is responsible and steps to take. e L-T Handbook was created by the Community Mediation and Resolution Center, which I discussed in my Aug. 25 column (Unrepentant Tenant, “Resources for Boulder renters”). ey are also a good resource to get information and resolve the problem. As I hinted earlier, few people (especially tenants) know that the city of Boulder has the oldest and strongest housing code in Colorado, called the property maintenance code. ere’s a lot to it, so I’ll be writing more about that in the next column. But it is separate from a tenant’s right under the Warranty of Habitability, and also referenced in e L-T Handbook. is opinion column does not necessarily re ect the views of Boulder Weekly. Email: letters@boulderweekly.com

National Hispanic Heritage Month celebrates the resilience of Hispanic entrepreneurs

by Aikta Marcoulier, Small Business Administration region 8 administrator

Each year, from Sept. 15 – Oct. 15, Americans celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month as a time to recognize the many contributions, diverse cultures, and extensive histories of the American Latino community. More Hispanics than ever before are seizing the opportunity to create new businesses which improve their cities and neighborhoods. Hispanics are the fastest growing segment of the U.S. population, and own and operate more than 350,000 businesses nationwide employing over 3 million people and counting.

Both President Biden, and Small Business Administration Administrator Isabella Castilla Guzman— the highest-ranking Latina in the President’s Cabinet—have made strengthening our Hispanic-owned small businesses a priority over the last 18 months. e COVID-19 pandemic is the leading cause of business failure over the last two years. is is especially true for those businesses owned by communities of color, women and veterans. On his rst day in o ce, the president took decisive action, in partnership with Congress, to implement programs and policies that bolstered millions of struggling small businesses, giving them a ghting chance to survive and thrive post-pandemic. e president signed the American Rescue Plan (ARP), which helped millions of Main Street small businesses with continued nancial aid, targeting smaller minority-owned rms in underserved communities. Hispanic-owned businesses were some of the most severely hurt by the various lockdowns of communities at the height of the pandemic. e ARP directly invested in our hardest-hit small businesses to ensure they could safely reopen—and remain open. e ARP also bolstered the Paycheck Protection Program with an additional $7.25 billion in funding to support small businesses and nonpro ts that were previously excluded, such as businesses owned by women, veterans and minorities. is plan also launched the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which targeted restaurants and other hard-hit food establishments, and the Shuttered Venue Operator Grant program.

In November 2021, the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was signed into law, which created enormous opportunities for minority businesses to gain access to over $1.2 trillion in federal, state and local government contracts on a variety of projects nationwide. A large percentage of Hispanic-owned businesses are in the construction and service industries which will directly bene t from this comprehensive bill. is bill will fortify entrepreneurship, innovation and domestic supply chains, and in the process strengthen our democracy by creating equitable pathways to the American dream.

Finally, the In ation Reduction Act of 2022 makes urgent investments that will bring down costs, level the playing eld and open historic opportunities for America’s 33 million small businesses and innovative startups—especially those businesses owned by minorities, women and veterans. is law not only tackles in ation and powers America’s transition to safer, cleaner energy, it also shrinks the budget de cit and—most importantly—drives down health care and energy costs for small businesses and their employees. Lower costs mean small businesses can focus on doing what they do best—creating jobs, developing talent, innovating, and opening doors of growth and opportunity across all our communities—including selling more American-made goods and services to the world’s largest buyer: the U.S. government.