Sponsor proposes Labor Department oversight of landlord-tenant disputes; department warns of legal and staffing problems

Senator Ryan Brownberger told the committee Senate Bill 2237 would empower the North Dakota Department of Labor and Human Rights to receive and investigate tenant complaints about landlord compliance with certain provisions of the North Dakota Century Code and to pursue disciplinary measures where warranted.

"This bill seeks to strengthen tenant protections and streamline the resolution of the landlord tenant dispute," Brownberger said. He acknowledged the Labor Department raised concerns about additional workload and said he was willing to work with the commissioner on amendments to address staffing or procedural issues.

Cody Schuler of the ACLU supported the bill and described real-world cases where tenants had limited recourse outside court. Schuler recounted an intake where a family that vacated due to an inability to pay was threatened with disposal of personal property before the 28-day storage period required under state law; legal-aid organizations told the family they were too overloaded to take the case. Schuler said the shortage of affordable legal assistance means tenants frequently lack a practical enforcement mechanism.

The North Dakota Apartment Association opposed the bill, arguing eviction and rental disputes are civil matters traditionally handled in court; the association's lobbyist said judges already assess statutory compliance during eviction proceedings.

Zachary Greenberg, interim commissioner of the Department of Labor and Human Rights, testified that the department has jurisdictional, legal and administrative concerns. He told the committee that disciplinary actions are typically tied to licensing structures and that the department does not license all landlords, which raises a legal problem about what entity could be disciplined. Greenberg also said the bill would create a substantial new workload and that his fiscal estimate for adding compliance investigators and support staff was likely conservative; he warned of conflicting orders if both the department and courts issued differing determinations in the same matter.

Greenberg requested the committee not advance SB 2237 in its present form and suggested alternative approaches or amendments to address jurisdiction, enforcement mechanism, and funding for additional administrative responsibilities.

The committee closed the hearing after hearing from sponsor, advocates, industry groups and the Department of Labor and Human Rights.