Representatives Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Maxine Waters (D-CA), and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) reintroduced the “Tenant Empowerment Act of 2024” on June 28. The NLIHC-endorsed legislation would provide tenants with the tools they need to hold HUD and housing providers accountable for poor housing conditions and improve the quality of their homes.
Too many residents living in HUD-assisted rental housing experience ongoing issues with the physical conditions of their homes due to chronic underfunding by Congress, non-compliance with HUD requirements by some owners, and a lack of capacity for oversight and enforcement. In communities across the country, some tenants have been forced to live in substandard conditions, with tenants of color disproportionately impacted by health-related hazards in these homes. The Tenant Empowerment Act would empower tenants with the tools needed to hold landlords accountable for substandard and unsafe housing conditions.
“The Tenant Empowerment Act builds on the successful advocacy of low-income residents by providing them with tools to hold landlords accountable when they fail to keep residents safely housed,” said NLIHC President and CEO Diane Yentel. “Congress should quickly enact this bill – along with robust investments in proven solutions – to ensure that safe, decent, and affordable housing is universally available to every renter in need.”
Read the press release at: https://tinyurl.com/ej22b3we
Read the bill text at: https://tinyurl.com/mw659yhm
Read a bill summary at: https://tinyurl.com/2ktta3c9
Watch Representative Pressley’s floor speech: https://tinyurl.com/yzp7ns9p