Kelly Campbell's son owns a husky and reflected on the challenges he faces when finding a pet-friendly apartment.
“My son has a dog and it's going to be tough. He lives with us now, but if we were to move, it would be very difficult to find a place that would allow dogs. “It's going to be very difficult,” Campbell says.
Campbell, a Pismo Beach resident, is one of the millions of pet owners in California who have struggled to find pet-friendly homes.
However, the proposed bill aims to change this.
“We think the easiest way to deal with this is to require landlords to actually have a reason, but still put limits in place so that we can also address the exorbitant rents we're seeing. ,” said California Congressman Mart Haney.
Mr. Haney proposed Assembly Bill 2216.. Landmark legislation that would ban blanket “no pet policies” and prohibit landlords from asking about pets on rental applications.
Contrary to the bill's headline, which says it would “require landlords to accept pets,” Haney wants to be clear that the bill does not say that.
“The big splashy headline was that landlords would be forced to keep pets. “That's not what this is going to do. “I believe that some of the pet bans will be lifted and there will be more opportunities for tenants with pets,” Haney said.
Past renters like Mr. Campbell are hoping to see positive changes in pet-friendly housing for his son.
“I think there needs to be a reasonable compromise with the landlord to allow pets.”
Property owners like Denny Keeler have expressed concern about potential property damage caused by irresponsible pet owners.
“As an investor, it becomes difficult to renovate apartments and houses because you have to be fair, but you also realize that this is a huge investment,” says Keeler.
Haney acknowledges the perspective of landlords and has expressed an openness to feedback during the bill's legislative process.
“If you have a large dog, your landlord may require you to take out the family or renter and carry some type of liability insurance to cover potential damages,” Haney says.
The bill will be heard in its first committee in Congress, likely in March or April, to hear questions and comments from stakeholders, tenants and landlords. If approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor, it could go into effect in 2025 at the earliest.
