(WI) Renter protections would be 'wiped out' by fast-tracked Republican measure, advocates warn

Source: madison.com





Renter protections would be 'wiped out' by fast-tracked Republican measure, advocates warn


SHAWN DOHERTY | The Capital Times | sdoherty@madison.com | (37) Comments | Posted: Wednesday, June 8, 2011 6:00 am

....................It appears that an amendment added Tuesday would jettison most other local regulations of landlord-tenant relations as well.

“A huge chunk of affordable housing progress will be wiped out with just this one bill,” says Brenda Konkel, executive director of the Tenant Resource Center in Madison. “This is a step backwards. This is very, very bad.”

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“Decades of thought and study went into Madison’s housing ordinances,” he says in the statement to The Capital Times. “They were crafted after extensive discussion with landlords and tenants. We are surprised that state leaders who profess to trust local government and believe in local control would introduce this measure in the first place, and, secondly, would fail to provide an extensive deliberative process so that cities throughout Wisconsin could discuss it.”

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“This matter is bigger than the housing issue. It is a question of who is best to make these decisions — the state or local government,” he says. “If the state enters this area, will it give serious consideration to the thoughts and concerns of those who are right there on the ground?”.............................

Read more: http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_56455c8c-d8a0-565d-b482-3998980cb5ce.html

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Damm. What next!

i hope you guys can put an end to it. i'm sure it's going on here in NC as well now that we have a republican legislature. damn i hate those bastards.

City regulations that would be voided if the bill becomes law include:

— A city ordinance that prevents landlords from showing an apartment for future rental until at least a quarter of the lease is up. A city alder’s proposal to expand that time even further would also be dead in the water. If Madison tenants lose the protection of this ordinance “somebody could move into an apartment August 15 and it could be shown to somebody else and a lease signed by August 16,” May says. (I agree, this should not be allowed.)

— A city ordinance that prohibits landlords from requiring Social Security numbers in applications; this is one way that landlords can run credit checks but also screen out undocumented immigrants. (Checking the credit of a potential tenant does not seem unreasonable to me. Screening for illegal immigrants doesn't either.)

— A city ordinance that forbids landlords from denying an application based solely on minimum income requirements or a minimum income-to-rent ratio; landlords typically like to rent to people whose incomes are around three times more than rent. (A tenant's ability to pay their rent should be a consideration. I think it should be in the form of income to rent ratio, not overall income.)

— An ordinance that prevents landlords from denying housing based on an applicant’s record for convictions older than two years. (Bankruptcy impacts you for seven years. Convictions, assumed to be felony convictions, shouldn't be any different. I am saying I understand a landlord considering the type of conviction.)

— A law that prevents landlords from discriminating against potential tenants or refusing to rent to them because they are on public assistance. (Public assistance should never be an excluding factor. Whether you can pay your rent should.)

— A city ordinance that requires landlords to give tenants at least a 24-hour notice before showing an apartment. (I actually think it should be a minimum of 72 hours notice to show an occupied apartment. This gives the tenant time to make arrangements to not be there, or be there.)

Your discussion of the above, makes the argument that these laws that impact localities should be vigorously discussed and debated in public.

I have been ripped off by too by many tenants too many times.

walk in to your home and evict you with no notice. It happened to me in the '70s. "We posted 30 day's notice on your door." "No, you didn't." "Who's the judge going to believe?" This is even more relevant now when so many are renting. Repugs suck.

Once you get a sensible gov and reasonable state congresscritters, you'll have to pass a "everything they passed is trashed" bill...or seventy.
My condolences and I am well aware we'll have to do something similar here in Ohio!

What next? More destruction. Will continue until we decide to deal with it in a meaningful way. I don't mean to denigrate those who are trying, but the tent thing is kind of silly.

We have three cities in Michigan that have been occupied by EFM's, Benton Harbor, Detroit and Pontiac so far with many more to follow. We are trying to do several Recalls without the support of the State Party so we can overturn these Fascist Dictates. I hope we can succeed with Grassroots effort alone or were in for more trouble ahead!