| Chapter 156 |
| 2023 -- S 0804 AS AMENDED Enacted 06/20/2023 |
| A N A C T |
| RELATING TO PROPERTY - RESIDENTIAL LANDLORD AND TENANT ACT |
Introduced By: Senator Dawn M. Euer |
| Date Introduced: March 23, 2023 |
| It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
| SECTION 1. Chapter 34-18-58 of the General Laws in Chapter 34-18 entitled "Residential |
| Landlord and Tenant Act" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: |
| 34-18-58. Statewide mandatory rental registry. |
| (a) All landlords shall register the following information with the department of health: |
| (i)(1) Names of individual landlords or any business entity responsible for leasing to a |
| tenant under this chapter; |
| (ii)(2) An active business address, PO box, or home address; |
| (iii)(3) An active email address; |
| (iv)(4) An active telephone number that would reasonably facilitate communications with |
| the tenant of each dwelling unit; |
| (v)(5) Any property manager, management company, or agent for service of the property, |
| along with the business address, PO box, or home address of the property manager, management |
| company, or agent and including;: |
| (A)(i) An active email address; and |
| (B)(ii) An active telephone number, for each such person or legal entity, if applicable, for |
| each dwelling unit; and |
| (vi)(6) Information necessary to identify each dwelling unit. |
| (b) All landlords who lease a residential property constructed prior to 1978 and that is not |
| exempt from the requirements of chapter 128.1 of title 42, ("lead hazard mitigation"), shall, in |
| addition to the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, for each dwelling unit, provide the |
| department of health with a valid certificate of conformance in accordance with chapter 128.1 of |
| title 42 ("lead hazard mitigation") and regulations derived therefrom, or evidence sufficient to |
| demonstrate that they are exempt from the requirement to obtain a certificate of conformance. |
| (c) Contingent upon available funding, the department of health, or designee, shall create |
| a publicly accessible online database containing the information obtained in accordance with |
| subsections (a) and (b) of this section, no later than nine (9) months following the effective date of |
| this section. |
| (d) All landlords subject to the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this section as of |
| September 1, 2024, shall register the information required by those subsections no later than |
| October 1, 2024. |
| A landlord who acquires a rental property, or begins leasing a rental property to a new |
| tenant, after September 1, 2024, shall register the information required by subsections (a) and (b) |
| of this section within thirty (30) days after the acquisition or lease to a tenant, whichever date is |
| earlier. All landlords subject to the requirements of subsections (a) and (b) of this section shall, |
| following initial registration, re-register by October 1 of each year in order to update any |
| information required to comply with subsections (a) and (b) of this section, or to confirm that the |
| information already supplied remains accurate. |
| (e) Any person or entity subject to subsections (a) and (b) of this section who fails to |
| comply with the registration provision in subsection (d) of this section, shall be subject to a civil |
| fine of at least fifty dollars ($50.00) per month for failure to register the information required by |
| subsection (a) of this section, or at least one-hundred and twenty-five dollars ($125) per month, for |
| failure to register the information required by subsection (b) of this section. |
| (f) All civil penalties imposed pursuant to subsection (e) of this section shall be payable to |
| the department of health. There is to be established a restricted receipt account to be known as the |
| "rental registry account" which shall be a separate account within the department of health. |
| Penalties received by the department pursuant to the terms of this section shall be deposited into |
| the account. Monies deposited in into the account shall be transferred to the department of health |
| and shall be expended for the purpose of administering the provisions of this section or lead hazard |
| mitigation, abatement, enforcement, or poisoning prevention. No penalties shall be levied under |
| this section prior to October 1, 2024. |
| (g) Notwithstanding the provisions of ยง 34-18-35, a landlord or any agent of a landlord |
| may not commence an action to evict for nonpayment of rent in any court of competent jurisdiction, |
| unless, at the time the action is commenced, the landlord is in compliance with the requirements of |
| subsections (a), (b), and (d) of this section. A landlord must present the court with evidence of |
| compliance with subsections (a), (b), and (d) of this section at the time of filing an action to evict |
| for nonpayment of rent in order to proceed with the civil action. |
| (h) The department of health may commence an action for injunctive relief and additional |
| civil penalties of up to fifty dollars ($50.00) per violation against any landlord who repeatedly fails |
| to comply with subsection (a) of this section. The attorney general may commence an action for |
| injunctive relief and additional civil penalties of up to one thousand dollars ($1,000) per violation |
| against any landlord who repeatedly fails to comply with subsection (b) of this section. Any |
| penalties obtained pursuant to this subsection shall be used for the purposes of lead hazard |
| mitigation, abatement, enforcement, or poisoning prevention, or for the purpose of administering |
| the provisions of this section. No penalties shall be levied under this section prior to October 1, |
| 2024. |
| SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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| LC002544 |
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