New Landlord Needs Help - Detached Garage Electric

[Paul Shepherd]

Happy New Year BPers! I'm looking for best practices advise/help. I recently purchased my first rental units back in May and all has been good. I have a single fam and a duplex. The tenants in the SFH called me the other day after a wind storm and said the electrical wire running to the detached garage was hanging really low. I went to check it out and was quickly reminded that the electrical line powering the garage was simply an interior romex line that was rigged up years ago and run from wiring in the attic to the garage. The years had not been good to this wire and the insulation and protective sheathing was shredded in some spots and the wire was resting on the house. I immediately said this is a major fire hazard and disconnected the rigged up wire. My question is do I have to provide power to the garage for them and if so, how quickly do I have to do it? I'm in Cleveland and it is winter now. To run proper electrical out there would require trenching and running the line below ground. The tenants use the garage regularly to do side gigs. I offered to provide extension chords, but I do not intend to get a proper electrical line hooked up, at least in the next couple of months. Do I have to provide them with power to the garage since they had it prior, even though it was a rigged up not to code line? Or am I not obligated to provide power to the garage?

Your help is greatly appreciated!

Paul