Legislators debate H.772 changes to eviction timelines, deposit rules and a rent-credit pilot

Representative Mark Mahal and legislative counsel walked the Economic Development, Housing & General Affairs committee through H.772, a bill that would reshape notice, deposit and ejectment procedures for residential tenancies while piloting rent-payment credit reporting.

The bill redefines how landlords must give 'actual notice' of termination, adding methods such as sheriff delivery, email (when also mailed) and door-posting when an address is unknown. Cameron Wood of the Office of Legislative Council said, "actual notice means receipt of written notice," and explained the proposal would extend the existing rebuttable presumption that mailed notices are received from three to five days to account for postal delays.

H.772 would also cap security deposits at an amount equal to two months’ rent (in addition to first-month rent), exclude reasonable pet deposits and require landlords to return half of a tenant’s deposit 45 days before the end of a no-cause termination period that the bill standardizes to 90 days. The proposal says landlords who fail to return the half-deposit on schedule would forfeit the right to withhold deductions.

On rent, the measure bars landlords from increasing rent more than once in any 12‑month period (with an exemption following a change in ownership). Committee members asked whether rents that include volatile utilities would be constrained by that limit.

The bill clarifies application fees and credit/background checks: landlords may charge only the actual cost of a background or credit check unless an applicant provides a current credit report dated within 90 days. Cameron Wood said violations could be treated as unfair practices enforceable by the attorney general and could give tenants a private right of action.

Ejectment and timing are central to the debate. The legislation would shorten the notice period for nonpayment from 14 to 10 days, allow termination for repeated late payments (defined as more than three late payments in a 12-month span, with late defined as 10+ days), and add landlord access refusal as a ground for termination (reducing that notice window to 21 days). For cases involving acts that "threaten the health or safety of other residents," the bill narrows language to "acts of violence or damage" and would require landlords to accompany notice with an affidavit specifying facts supporting the termination; the proposed timeline for those cases would be five days. Members raised concerns about situations where violent acts involve guests or where victims of domestic violence could be penalized.

The bill would also include a pilot program, run with the Office of the State Treasurer, to report positive rent payments to credit-reporting agencies so rent-paying tenants with no prior credit history can build credit. Participation would be voluntary, and failure to pay would remove a person from the program.

Cameron Wood summarized the bill’s status in committee: "It is out of General and Housing; I believe the committee voted 8–3," and the measure was pending action in Appropriations. The committee agreed to schedule follow-up sessions with Judicial and other witnesses (including judges and subject-matter stakeholders) to refine affidavit and evidentiary language and to examine implementation details.

The committee deferred remaining sections for the next meeting, asked staff to circulate a one‑page summary, and signaled plans to consult JFO and other agencies before floor action.