Rep. Tom Stevens seeks to expand tenant-representation pilot statewide and delay most rental-law changes to 2027

Representative Tom Stevens (D–Waterbury) told the House Committee on General and Housing on March 26 that his amendment to bill 8772 would remove geographic limits on a tenant-representation pilot and push most other provisions of the rental package to take effect on July 1, 2027.

Stevens said the pilot, launched in 2023 and funded in 2024 for Lamoille and Windsor counties, “has been very successful” and that Legal Aid “was able to cure the evictions of close to 50% of the people that they worked with.” He said the amendment would let Legal Aid provide the same representation statewide but does not add a new appropriation in the bill.

Legislative counsel (Cameron) explained the mechanics. He said the amendment would make the majority of the bill effective July 1, 2027, while allowing the representation pilot to take effect on passage. He also described a transition rule tied to a security-deposit cap, noting that the amendment updates the transition language so landlords who received larger deposits before the cap would retain those deposits until the rental agreement ends if the cap is delayed.

Committee members questioned funding and parity of representation. Members were told tenants have not been legally barred from representation but often cannot afford counsel. Counsel and the sponsor cited program figures: Legal Aid reached more than 150 tenants in the pilot and about half accepted representation and had their eviction settled; speakers said roughly three-quarters to four-fifths of property owners typically have attorney representation while fewer than 25% of tenants do.

Members also probed financial effects. Counsel and the sponsor said a protracted eviction can cost $7,500–$10,000 from start to finish, while Legal Aid’s average intervention in recent years was about $4,000, and that representation and rental-arrear programs often recover back rent more often than not.

The amendment also directs the Agency of Human Services and Legal Aid to update grant documents where they conflict with revised session-law language so that grant timing and reporting align with the amendment’s dates. Counsel said some grant reporting periods were extended after the pilot’s funding arrived a year later than the session law assumed.

Stevens summarized the amendment’s two main effects: expanding the tenant-representation pilot statewide without adding funding in this bill, and delaying the implementation of most other changes in the underlying rental bill by one year. The committee did not take a straw poll or vote; members agreed to take a break and reconvene later in the day.

Next steps: the committee paused consideration and will return to the amendment for further questions, counsel advice and a possible straw poll or vote at a later time.