Bill Text: IA HF2060 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to utility cost disclosures in connection with rental properties, providing penalties, and including applicability provisions.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-02-04 - Subcommittee, Cownie, Grassley, and Oldson. H.J. 171. [HF2060 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-HF2060-Introduced.html
House File 2060 - Introduced




                                 HOUSE FILE       
                                 BY  ISENHART

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act relating to utility cost disclosures in connection
  2    with rental properties, providing penalties, and including
  3    applicability provisions.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 476.56, Code 2016, is amended to read as
  1  2 follows:
  1  3    476.56  Energy costs provided.
  1  4    A gas or electric public utility shall provide, upon the
  1  5 request of a person who states in writing that the person is an
  1  6 owner of real property, or an interested prospective purchaser
  1  7 or renter of the property, which is or has been receiving gas
  1  8 or electric service from the public utility, the annual gas
  1  9 or electric energy costs for the property.  A gas or electric
  1 10 public utility and, notwithstanding section 476.1, subsection
  1 11 5, a public utility furnishing water or sewer service, shall
  1 12 comply with the utility service cost disclosure provisions of
  1 13 section 562A.13A with regard to existing or prospective renters
  1 14 of real property.
  1 15    Sec. 2.  NEW SECTION.  562A.13A  Utility service cost
  1 16 disclosure statements ==== penalty.
  1 17    1.  In addition to the required disclosure provisions
  1 18 of section 562A.13, the landlord or a person authorized to
  1 19 enter into a rental agreement on behalf of the landlord shall
  1 20 disclose to a prospective tenant in writing at or before the
  1 21 commencement of the tenancy, and to an existing tenant at any
  1 22 point during the tenancy, the gas, electric, water, or sewer
  1 23 utility service costs for a dwelling unit.  Utility service
  1 24 costs shall be provided with respect to a dwelling unit for the
  1 25 preceding twelve=month period based upon information obtained
  1 26 at no charge by the landlord or person authorized to enter
  1 27 into the rental agreement from the utility furnishing utility
  1 28 service, pursuant to an energy cost disclosure statement
  1 29 developed pursuant to subsection 2.  In the event that
  1 30 utility service has been provided for a period of less than
  1 31 one year, cost information shall be provided for the period
  1 32 beginning when utility service commenced.  In the event of new
  1 33 construction, utility service cost information from similar
  1 34 dwelling units in similar properties may be obtained in writing
  1 35 from a utility and supplied to a prospective tenant, or in
  2  1 the alternative a landlord may obtain a written estimate of
  2  2 anticipated utility service costs from a utility or an energy
  2  3 consultant.
  2  4    2.  The office of consumer advocate shall develop the
  2  5 format of an energy cost disclosure statement for utilization
  2  6 by landlords in complying with this section.  The format
  2  7 developed shall include space for the disclosure of the
  2  8 annual utility service costs, and shall also include space
  2  9 for a representative list of energy efficiency standards
  2 10 incorporating features or upgrades that a dwelling unit or
  2 11 the building of which it is a part might conceivably exhibit
  2 12 or offer.  The list of energy efficiency standards shall
  2 13 be developed by the office of the consumer advocate, in
  2 14 consultation with state and federal energy efficiency agencies
  2 15 and experts, and shall be accompanied by a space for notation
  2 16 by the landlord indicating whether or not the unit or building
  2 17 meets or exceeds each standard.
  2 18    3.  A landlord who fails to comply with the requirements of
  2 19 this section upon receipt of a written notice by a tenant or
  2 20 a prospective tenant that utility service costs have not been
  2 21 disclosed shall have seven days from the date of receipt of the
  2 22 notice to provide the required utility service cost disclosure
  2 23 statement.  A landlord who fails to provide the disclosure
  2 24 statement within the seven=day period or who enters into a
  2 25 rental agreement with a tenant without first disclosing utility
  2 26 service costs on a disclosure statement or who misrepresents
  2 27 utility service costs on a disclosure statement, shall be
  2 28 subject to a civil penalty of five hundred dollars.  Such
  2 29 penalty shall be imposed by the office of consumer advocate or
  2 30 pursuant to a civil proceeding regarding recovery of damages
  2 31 by a tenant for nondisclosure, and shall be remitted to the
  2 32 division of community action agencies for deposit into the
  2 33 energy crisis fund created in section 216A.102.
  2 34    Sec. 3.  APPLICABILITY.  This Act applies to rental
  2 35 agreements entered into on or after January 1, 2017.
  3  1                           EXPLANATION
  3  2 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  3  3 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  3  4    This bill relates to utility cost disclosure requirements in
  3  5 connection with rental properties.
  3  6    The bill modifies provisions of Code section 476.56,
  3  7 relating to the provision of energy costs by a gas or electric
  3  8 utility upon request with regard to the purchase or rental
  3  9 of real property, to provide that the Code section refers to
  3 10 ownership or prospective ownership of real property, not the
  3 11 rental or prospective rental of the property.
  3 12    The bill establishes new Code section 562A.13A within the
  3 13 uniform residential landlord and tenant law provisions of Code
  3 14 chapter 562A requiring that a landlord or a person authorized
  3 15 to enter into a rental agreement on behalf of the landlord
  3 16 shall disclose to a prospective tenant in writing at or before
  3 17 the commencement of the tenancy, or to an existing tenant at
  3 18 any point during the tenancy, the gas, electric, water, or
  3 19 sewer utility service costs for a dwelling unit.  The bill
  3 20 specifies that the utility service costs shall be provided with
  3 21 respect to a dwelling unit for the preceding 12=month period,
  3 22 or for the period beginning when utility service commenced
  3 23 if less than one year, based upon information obtained at no
  3 24 charge by the landlord or person authorized to enter into
  3 25 the rental agreement from the utility furnishing utility
  3 26 service.  In the event of new construction, the bill requires
  3 27 utility service cost information from similar dwelling units
  3 28 in similar properties to be obtained in writing from a utility
  3 29 and supplied to a prospective tenant, or in the alternative a
  3 30 landlord may obtain a written estimate of anticipated utility
  3 31 service costs from a utility or an energy consultant.
  3 32    The bill directs the office of consumer advocate to develop
  3 33 an energy cost disclosure statement for utilization by
  3 34 landlords, containing space for the disclosure of the utility
  3 35 service costs and also including space for a representative
  4  1 list of energy efficiency standards incorporating features or
  4  2 upgrades that a dwelling unit or the building of which it is
  4  3 a part might conceivably exhibit or offer.  The bill provides
  4  4 that the list of energy efficiency standards shall be developed
  4  5 by the office in consultation with state and federal energy
  4  6 efficiency agencies and experts and shall be accompanied by a
  4  7 space for the landlord to indicate whether or not the unit or
  4  8 building meets or exceeds each standard.
  4  9    The bill provides that a landlord who fails to supply the
  4 10 required utility service cost disclosure statement upon receipt
  4 11 of a written notice by a tenant or a prospective tenant shall
  4 12 have seven days from the date of receipt of the notice to
  4 13 provide the required  disclosure statement.  If a landlord
  4 14 fails to provide the disclosure statement within the seven=day
  4 15 period, or enters into a rental agreement with a tenant without
  4 16 first disclosing utility service costs or misrepresents utility
  4 17 service costs on a disclosure statement, the bill provides that
  4 18 the landlord shall be subject to a civil penalty of $500.  The
  4 19 penalty shall be imposed by the office of consumer advocate or
  4 20 pursuant to a civil proceeding regarding recovery of damages
  4 21 by a tenant for nondisclosure, and shall be remitted to the
  4 22 division of community action agencies for deposit into the
  4 23 energy crisis fund created in Code section 216A.102.
  4 24    The bill applies to rental agreements entered into on or
  4 25 after January 1, 2017.
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