Committee advances bill to limit how far back landlords can consider drug-distribution convictions

The House Housing & Community Development Committee on Wednesday voted to report House Bill 14 92 as amended, advancing a proposal that would limit how far landlords may consider prior drug-distribution convictions when screening rental applicants.

The bill, as amended, would cap the “look-back” period for drug-distribution convictions at seven years, reduce penalties for a first-time violation, change enforcement provisions and exempt housing providers that own 10 or fewer rental dwelling units, supporters said. The committee adopted amendment 01729 before voting to report the bill; the amendment passed 25–1 and the bill was reported out, as amended, by a 14–12 vote.

Representative Siegel, the bill’s sponsor, framed the measure as a narrow correction to a federal-era restriction. “No one’s crime that they committed at a young age should follow them for the rest of their life,” Siegel said, calling the change a targeted response to the 1988 Fair Housing Amendments Act provision he said carved drug-distribution convictions out of fair-housing protections.

Siegel told the committee the legislation is based on criminological evidence and a seven‑year standard. He said about 3,000,000 Americans and “over 80,000 Pennsylvanians” are affected by the federal limitation and that after seven years of no new offenses a person “is no more likely to commit a new offense than a resident who has never committed an offense.” He also said the bill was developed in consultation with industry stakeholders and that the Pennsylvania Apartment Association supports the result.

Opponents voiced concern that the bill would impose new mandates on landlords and could reduce investment in rental housing. Chairman Irvin, who said he does not support the underlying bill, urged members to back the amendment because it “lessens the penalties, and does help your landlords” who have fewer than 10 units. Representative McKenzie said she would vote no on the bill, saying she is worried that downplaying marijuana and other low-level drug offenses is “not a laughing matter.” Representative Probst and others argued that limiting the look-back to seven years is fair and promotes reentry and stability.

Supporters said the amendment eases burdens on small landlords and removes liability for landlords who offer housing to people with older convictions; opponents said more regulatory mandates risk reducing available housing and shift safety responsibilities to landlords.

The committee’s recorded votes matched the tallies announced at the meeting: amendment 01729 adopted 25–1; the bill as amended reported out of committee 14–12.

If enacted, the bill would change how housing providers assess criminal records for drug-distribution convictions but would not itself directly change criminal records or expungement processes, speakers said.