Enhanced tenant protections proposed

A bill that would add failure to remediate mold and pest infestation to the list of maintenance emergencies that constitute a breach of contract between a landlord and tenant in Nebraska law was considered Feb. 20 by the Judiciary Committee.

LB587, introduced by Omaha Sen. Ashlei Spivey, would amend the Uniform Residential Landlord Tenant Act to specify that a landlord’s failure to address mold or pest infestations would be considered a breach of a lease.

Under the bill, a landlord’s time to respond to a maintenance emergency, after receiving written notice from a tenant, would decrease from 14 to seven days. Additionally, the waiting period before a lease is terminated due to a landlord’s failure to address a maintenance emergency would be shortened from 30 days to 14.

LB587 would allow tenants to deduct from their rent the cost of items or services purchased to address a mold or pest infestation if a landlord does not remedy the situation within 14 days. Tenants also could recover damages and attorney fees from landlords for negligence in addressing problems that damage a tenant’s personal property.

Spivey said current law does not protect tenants from serious health hazards, leaving them with little recourse if a landlord fails to address mold, pest infestations and lack of essential services. The proposal is not intended to punish landlords who manage their rental property responsibly, she said, but rather to address “bad actors.”

“Stronger tenant protections lead to better housing conditions, which benefit both renters and communities by reducing housing instability,” Spivey said.

Testifying on behalf of Legal Aid of Nebraska, Scott Mertz spoke in support of LB587. Legal aid attorneys frequently assist renters whose landlords delay addressing urgent issues such as faulty plumbing, lack of running water, bed bug infestations and black mold, he said. Even with the agency’s help, however, landlords often are not responsive, he said.

Additionally, Mertz said, low-income tenants are more vulnerable when dealing with substandard housing due to a lack of financial resources.

“The reality is that for low-income tenants, waiting weeks for critical repairs is not simply an inconvenience,” Mertz said. “It can lead to health risks, financial hardship and displacement.”

Mindy Rush Chipman also supported the proposal on behalf of ACLU Nebraska. The bill would provide tenants more options and ensure that those who need to vacate their housing due to poor conditions can do so promptly, she said.

It also would allow tenants who can’t vacate substandard housing to remediate issues themselves and deduct any out-of-pocket costs from their rent, Rush Chipman said.

Ryan Norman, an attorney who represents landlords, opposed the bill. He said the measure would allow a resident to terminate a lease if a landlord failed to address any maintenance issue within seven days, even those that are not emergencies.

Tara Holterhaus also opposed the bill on behalf of the Apartment Association of Nebraska and the Nebraska Association of Commercial Property Owners.

Requiring landlords to cure a breach of lease within seven days is unreasonable in some instances, she said, because they may have to hire outside contractors whose schedules a landlord cannot control. This could lead some landlords to try and fix issues themselves or with on-site maintenance instead of hiring a professional, she said.

“This bill would almost encourage landlords to use band-aid fixes with an on-site maintenance tech rather than engaging an outside professional because they’re feeling forced to act so quickly because it’s an unreasonable amount of time,” Holterhaus said.

The committee took no immediate action on LB587.