Committee reviews draft requiring landlords to accept government ID or ITIN when applicants lack Social Security numbers

At a meeting of the Senate Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs Committee, staff reviewed language in draft 4.1 of the committee's housing bill that would change how landlords may handle Social Security numbers on rental applications. Cameron Wood, Office of Legislative Counsel, told the committee the draft lets a landlord request an applicant's Social Security number to conduct a background check but, if an applicant does not have an SSN, requires the landlord to accept either an original, unexpired government-issued identification or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN).

The change to draft 4.1 removes a prior subdivision that required SSN information to appear on the application itself and instead permits alternate identification to be provided later, Wood said. "In the event an applicant does not have a Social Security number, a landlord shall accept 1 of the following: an original copy of an unexpired form of government issued identification or an individual taxpayer identification number," Wood said, describing the language he added based on the committee's earlier conversations.

The committee discussed implementation questions raised by landlords. Chris Rice of the Vermont Landlords Association told the committee the association proposed the language and described current industry practices for pulling credit reports. "This is the language that we suggested," Rice said, adding that the approach matches current practices even if imperfect.

Committee members and counsel noted the bill does not force landlords to stop requesting SSNs; it only requires an accepted alternative when an SSN is not available. One member observed that existing credit-reporting platforms typically produce more complete matches when an SSN is available; Rice and others said platforms can sometimes use other identifiers but that SSNs yield more precise matches. Committee members said the number of applicants affected is likely small. "Very few," a committee member said when asked how many applications would lack SSNs.

Members flagged two policy tradeoffs: the language aims to reduce a potential “chilling effect” for applicants without SSNs while preserving landlords' ability to evaluate rental risk, and it could still leave room for landlords to deny an applicant if available credit information is deemed insufficient. Wood noted the language was a negotiated compromise with landlord representatives and that the committee could decide whether to require SSNs on applications or to leave the alternate-ID approach as drafted.

The committee did not take a formal vote on this provision during the session and deferred final decisions as it continues working through draft 4.1. Staff said the housing bill remains under active revision and that draft 4.1 would be posted on the committee website.