LA County Supervisors Vote to Support 'Maternity Hotels' Bill

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Tuesday voted 4-1 in support of a state bill that would make operating so-called "maternity hotels" in residential-zoned areas illegal.

Supervisor Don Knabe recommended backing legislation by Assemblyman Curt Hagman, R-Chino Hills, designed to give municipalities the authority to impose stiff fines and jail time to enforce zoning regulations.

"'Maternity hotels' are on the rise and related to a recent 'birthing tourism' trend across the United States, whereby homes in residential areas are being transformed into makeshift hotels for foreign visitors to give birth in this country," Knabe said. One seven-bedroom Chino Hills home was divided into a 17-room hotel, according to Hagman.

Knabe said the homes, which provide postpartum care and often cater to new mothers from China, take business from legitimate hotels, evade taxes and are neighborhood nuisances, in addition to putting mothers and newborns at risk.

Hagman's bill would make operating a hotel in violation of local building and zoning codes a misdemeanor under state law. Violators could be fined from $500 to $5,000 or sentenced to 30 days to six months in jail, or both.

In February, Knabe recommended that a task force with representatives from the Sheriff's Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, Regional Planning Commission and Department of Public Works handle residents' complaints about boarding houses catering to pregnant women. A report back from that group is expected as early as tomorrow, according to a Knabe spokesman.

Immigrant rights activists have objected to the criminalization of the boarding houses and urged the county to handle complaints on a case-by-case basis.

Betty Hung, policy director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center has called the county's plan to crack down on birthing centers an "overly broad, disproportionately heavy-handed response."

Supervisor Michael Antonovich cast the dissenting vote. He objected to what he saw as meddling by the state in local issues.

"This is an issue that the county should be addressing if it needs to be addressed," Antonovich said. "I wish the state legislators would spend their time trying to solve our budget problems."

Knabe said the county needed the state's help.

"We are doing all we can on the local level to stop this practice," Knabe said. "What we also need are clear criminal penalties."

--Elizabeth Marcellino, City News Service