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Howard County Council hears wide range of testimony on emergency tenant protections bill
Summary
Council members and residents debated Council Bill 33 — the Rental Protection and Stability Act — during a lengthy public hearing. Sponsors said the emergency measure would pause rent increases and certain lease changes during the COVID‑19 emergency; landlords and trade groups proposed amendments to preserve just‑cause evictions and to make the law prospective only.
The Howard County Council heard hours of testimony on Council Bill 33 on May 21, a proposed emergency ordinance that would bar rent increases, certain fees and material lease changes for the duration of a proclaimed emergency and for a short period thereafter.
Sponsor Councilmember Liz Walsh introduced the Rental Protection and Stability Act as an emergency measure intended to "hold the economic line for the tenants among us," saying the bill would prevent increases in rent, cuts in services such as utilities, and material lease changes while the state of emergency continues and for a short period after it ends.
Trade and landlord groups…
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