The bill expands conditions covered under the warranty of habitability for residential premises in relation to indoor air quality, water quality, and other health and safety issues. The bill adds water damage, fire damage, and damage due to a natural or an environmental event as conditions under which a residential premises is deemed uninhabitable.
The bill requires a landlord to have a residential premises
inspected and tested by a certified industrial hygienist or an industrial hygienist to determine if the premises is safe for habitability. The bill also clarifies landlord responsibilities in remediating a residential premises to a habitable standard and how a tenant must give notice to a landlord if there are habitability issues with the tenant's residence.
The bill directs the executive director of the department of public
health and environment to establish health and safety standards for habitability by January 1, 2026.
The bill prohibits a landlord from retaliating against a tenant for
making a good faith complaint about the conditions of the residential premises and provides conditions by which a tenant may terminate a lease if a habitability issue is not remediated.
