April 5, 2024 State Capitol Report

The House was the only chamber in session this week as members focused on their deadline for moving House Bills out of House Committees, which is code for saying it was a very busy week. There are always good and bad consequences of not getting a bill out of committee before the committee deadline. For your Illinois REALTORS® Legislative Team, it means some relief when bills we oppose are not moving forward in the legislative process. It was a tough but successful week for Illinois REALTORS®. Our legislative measure to prohibit crime-free ordinances from forcing landlords to straddle between two colliding state laws was passed out of the Housing Committee. Read more below about HB 5432. In the same committee, some of the bills we find too onerous did not move forward (at least for now).

Bills of Interest

We are pleased to announce this important bill passed out of the Housing Committee on a vote of 11-3 on Wednesday. Conflicting state laws put landlords (and especially those who have a Real Estate Brokers License) in the position of losing “landlord licensing” with a municipality or potentially face a human rights violation and lose their Illinois Real Estate Broker’s license.

The bill prohibits municipalities from enforcing an ordinance that imposes a penalty or threat against a resident, property owner, tenant, landlord, or other person solely because of contact with a law enforcement agency.

HB 5432 would not allow municipalities and counties to impose a penalty on a property owner or landlord for the failure to do any of the following:

  • Evict or penalize a tenant because of the tenant’s association with another tenant or household member who has had contact with a law enforcement agency or has a criminal conviction.
  • Evict, refuse to lease or renew a lease, or otherwise penalize a tenant because of the tenant’s criminal history or alleged unlawful conduct or arrest.
  • Include a provision in a lease or rental agreement that provides as grounds for eviction, any cause that conflicts with state or federal law.

Also, the bill would not allow municipalities to:

  • Define a nuisance as, any contact by a tenant with a law enforcement agency, any request by a tenant, -landlord, resident, or property owner for emergency assistance.
  • Requires a tenant to obtain a certificate of occupancy as a condition of tenancy.
  • Establish, maintain, or promote a registry of tenants for the purposes of discouraging a landlord from renting to a tenant on the registry or excluding a tenant on the registry from rental housing within the local government’s jurisdiction.

HB 5432 focuses on preserving housing stability and bans outright any so-called local crime-free housing ordinance and would render any existing version of a local crimefree housing ordinance invalid and unenforceable and would prohibit any municipality from creating a new, similar regulation.  In addition, it is important to note that Illinois REALTORS® are a part of a large coalition to address this issue. Other organizations include Housing Action Illinois, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, Chicago Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights and the Illinois Coalition Against Domestic Violence. There is also an identical bill in the Senate (SB 3680) sponsored by Sen. Villa. HB 5432 moved to Second Reading in the House.

At the request of the Illinois REALTORS®, Amendment 1 was adopted onto this bill to completely change the bill to clarify that a condo association may not exercise a right of refusal based on discrimination or other unlawful purpose. REALTORS® are appreciative of the sponsor’s willingness to change the bill and accommodate our request. The bill moved to Second Reading-Short Debate.  Illinois REALTORS® supports this bill.

This bill amends the Landlord/Tenant Act to provide that if a landlord uses a third-party payment portal to collect rental payments from tenants and if a transaction fee or other charge is imposed through the portal on rental payments made by e-check or other means, then the landlord shall allow the tenant to make rental payments by delivering a paper check to the landlord or the landlord’s business office or by means that do not require the tenant to pay the transaction fee or other charge. This week, the sponsor attempted to amend the bill to allow the landlord to reduce the tenant’s monthly rent by the amount equivalent to the third-party payment portal fee, so that there is not an additional fee for the tenant to pay online. Illinois REALTORS® strongly opposed this amendment, which was ultimately tabled. The bill is on Second Reading in the House without Amendment 1. Illinois REALTORS® is neutral to the original bill.

Last week, HB 4528 was moved out of the Housing Committee.  This bill provides that a landlord must repair a tenant’s leaking water pipes within 30 days of being notified of the leak. This requirement applies if the leaking water pipe is under the landlord’s control, but it does not apply if the leaking water pipe is owned by a municipality or water utility. Provides that, if a landlord violates this provision and the tenant pays the water bill, the landlord is liable for any additional costs incurred by the tenant because of the water leak. This week, House Committee Amendment 1 was adopted in Housing Committee to require the work be done by a licensed plumber. The bill with the Amendment is on Second Reading and Illinois REALTORS® is neutral.

This bill creates the Summary of Rights for Safer Homes Act. It requires the Illinois Department of Human Rights to create a summary form advising tenants who have suffered domestic violence or sexual violence of the rights that they have under Illinois law that provide protection in their ability to have safe housing. Requires landlords to attach a copy of the summary as the first page of any written residential lease entered with a tenant. This bill is identical to SB 3652 (Sen. Peters), which has moved to Third Reading in the Senate.  The House Bill moved to Second. Both sponsors have agreed to amend their bills (at Illinois REALTORS®’ suggestion) to change the effective date to Jan. 1, 2026.  With the amendment, Illinois REALTORS® is neutral.

Next Week At-A-Glance

Capitol Conference

Capitol Conference is HERE. We look forward to seeing everyone next Wednesday , April 10. Walk-ins are welcome! Don’t miss this free event for members and the most important REALTOR® advocacy day of the year! We need YOU to make a difference! Meet with your legislator and help support the housing legislation package that will benefit you, your clients, our industry, and our communities. Connect with colleagues, meet lawmakers, and enjoy inspiring guest speakers Michael Steele, Emanuel “Chris” Welch and Pat Dwyer! Enjoy the Lobby Day Reception on the Illinois REALTORS® Bicentennial Plaza!  We’re setting up now for the big event! Come be a part of it! Join us Wednesday in Springfield to demonstrate the power of the REALTOR® voice!  We’ll see you there!

Thank you for reading the April 5, 2024 State Capitol Report. Click here to read previous reports.