Cracking down on bad landlords would be illegal for cities under Arizona bill
Ryan Randazzo
City councils and other small governments in Arizona will not be allowed to pass any new rules for landlords under a bill moving through the state Legislature with support from the apartment industry.
Gail Griffin, R-Hereford, introduced House Bill 2115, which would prevent cities, towns and counties from enforcing any new landlord rules passed after Dec. 31, 2018.
Opponents of the bill say it handcuffs municipalities that want to set requirements for things like trash removal, security and living conditions of renters.
The bill has made it through both chambers and is awaiting a final vote in the Senate before being sent to Gov. Doug Ducey, who in the past has favored legislation that restricts municipalities from enacting patchwork rules on businesses.
State law already sets out the rules for landlords and tenants in the 1973 Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. While different municipalities have enacted additional ordinances, the bill will prohibit anything else.
The Arizona Multihousing Association and the Manufactured Housing Communities of Arizona are the only two groups officially supporting the bill, while multiple community activist groups and the League of Arizona Cities and Towns are opposed.
The bill passed the House Feb. 25 on a 31-29 party-line vote with Democrats opposed.
Griffin did not speak in support of the bill at its first committee hearing in January, but fellow Republicans gave it their endorsement.
"Sometimes we are trying to really create uniformity," Rep. Bob Thorpe, R-Flagstaff, said at the House Government Committee hearing on the bill. "So we have a uniform playing field for our taxpayers and our constituents."
Original bill would have voided rules
Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, the chairman of the committee, amended the bill so that it only prohibited new municipal rules passed after Dec. 31. The original version of the bill would have voided all existing regulations cities and towns have created.
Kavanagh said that amendment was made so that the bill did not affect existing rules passed by city councils and other municipal bodies.
"When I discovered that the bill that I permitted to be heard in this committee was going to negate the good work of the Tempe town council, I was shocked, and I immediately attempted to stop that," he said, perhaps a bit tongue-in-cheek. Tempe, which is a city, not a town, is generally a much more liberal than the town of Fountain Hills, where Kavanagh served on the council.
"There will be no drastic changes based on this bill," Kavanagh said.
Jake Hinman, a lobbyist for the apartment trade group, said his group supports the bill.
"We think the state should have one set of rules for both landlords and tenants," Hinman said. "We think patchwork regulation in this area makes it confusing for both landlords and tenants."
Opponents want cities to have power
Alex Vidal, a lobbyist for the League of Arizona Cities and Towns, said the bill prevents municipalities from helping residents negotiate disputes over issues like mold, pest control, garbage and discrimination.
"Most residents caught up in these situations don't have the money or the time to go to court," Vidal said. "There is no state agency that enforces landlord-tenant issues. Cities have been the ones helping residents settle disputes."
Vidal also said that the bill will not end the patchwork of rules that exist from place to place today because it won't preempt existing municipal rules. That's a problem, he said.
"For neighboring cities and towns, it prohibits them from enforcing the same regulations," he said.
The dispute mirrors many others at the Legislature, with state lawmakers moving to preempt municipalities from regulating things like home-based businesses, short-term vacation rentals and other activities.
Ellen Katz, litigation director for the William E. Morris Institute For Justice, said the bill is problematic. She said a broad interpretation of the bill could preclude municipalities from implementing even basic building codes.
"This is a bill run by landlords because they want to have the least amount of restriction on them," Katz said. "The state should be the floor (for regulations). It shouldn't be the ceiling."
Reach reporter Ryan Randazzo at ryan.randazzo@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4331. Follow him on Twitter @UtilityReporter.