Signed by Governor Matt Meyer

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that establishes the a Rights and Responsibilities Guide for the Landlords and Tenants Committee in Delaware.

Highlights:

• Requires the Delaware Real Estate Commission to draft, maintain, and distribute a rights and responsibilities guide for landlords and tenants (Sec. 1).

• Establishes the Rights and Responsibilities Guide for Landlords and Tenants Committee within the Commission to support that process (Sec. 2). 

• Requires the guide to include, at minimum, information on the following topics (Sec 2): 

• Renters and flood insurance availability; 

• Fair housing laws; 

• Lead-based pain disclosures; 

• Eviction diversion programs and tenants’ right to legal representation; 

• Smoke and carbon monoxide detector requirements; 

• Bed bug infestation obligations; and 

• Local licensing, registration, and inspection requirements. 

• Requires landlords and real estate service providers to provide the guide to prospective tenants under state consumer protection law (Sec. 3).

• Requires the Commission to report to the General Assembly on what disclosures are currently required independent of the guide and whether existing law should be amended to allow those disclosures to be incorporated into the guide (Sec. 4). 

• Specifies that this act takes effect upon enactment and is to be implemented within 1 year of passage (Sec. 5). 

• Specifies that penalty provisions take effect 180 days after implementation (Sec. 6).

Full Bill Text

Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that establishes the a Rights and Responsibilities Guide for the Landlords and Tenants Committee in Delaware.

Highlights:

• Requires the Delaware Real Estate Commission to draft, maintain, and distribute a rights and responsibilities guide for landlords and tenants (Sec. 1).

• Establishes the Rights and Responsibilities Guide for Landlords and Tenants Committee within the Commission to support that process (Sec. 2). 

• Requires the guide to include, at minimum, information on the following topics (Sec 2): 

• Renters and flood insurance availability; 

• Fair housing laws; 

• Lead-based pain disclosures; 

• Eviction diversion programs and tenants’ right to legal representation; 

• Smoke and carbon monoxide detector requirements; 

• Bed bug infestation obligations; and 

• Local licensing, registration, and inspection requirements. 

• Requires landlords and real estate service providers to provide the guide to prospective tenants under state consumer protection law (Sec. 3).

• Requires the Commission to report to the General Assembly on what disclosures are currently required independent of the guide and whether existing law should be amended to allow those disclosures to be incorporated into the guide (Sec. 4). 

• Specifies that this act takes effect upon enactment and is to be implemented within 1 year of passage (Sec. 5). 

• Specifies that penalty provisions take effect 180 days after implementation (Sec. 6).

Full Bill Text