Vice President Stewart Shepherds Passage of Bill to Strengthen Tenant Safety and Notification in Montgomery County

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, July 16, 2024

From the Office of Council Vice President Kate Stewart

Today the Montgomery County Council enacted legislation that strengthens tenant protections and requires landlords to notify tenants of fire safety, insurance and building maintenance issues. Authored and introduced by Council Vice President Kate Stewart, Bill 7-24, Landlord-Tenant Relations - Tenant Protection and Notification, will better protect tenants and inform them of building matters pertaining to their health, safety and economic security. 

“I started writing this bill more than a year ago, after a fire took the life of Melanie Diaz at the Arrive apartment building, followed not long after by a power outage that put many elderly people at risk at The Grand in North Bethesda,” said Vice President Stewart. “These kinds of dangerous incidents, and others my office looked into at the prompting of residents around the County, can be avoided by improving communication and emergency planning in multifamily rental properties. I listened carefully to the concerns of residents, and I wrote this bill in close collaboration with our County permitting and housing agencies. We can and need to make real strides to protect people where it matters most – in their homes.”

An increasing number of apartment buildings in Montgomery County are seeing emergency situations, including fires, power outages, water outages, and evacuations, with many instances of building management lacking prevention plans, or plans to inform residents of the incidents and what necessary precautions residents should take. The bill protects tenants by requiring building managers to clearly and rapidly communicate information to tenants during emergencies.

In public hearings and meetings with Vice President Stewart, tenants spoke about challenges during emergencies, mostly related to a lack of transparency and poor communication from management. Stewart’s bill recognizes that emergency communication is critical to safeguarding the community’s health, safety and well-being, especially in the event of fire.

Further, Bill 7-24 requires the following:

• Residential leases must clearly state whether the building has automatic sprinkler systems, inform tenants of emergency plans, and whether the lease insures tenant possessions in event of loss or damage due to instances such as fire, smoke or water.
• 24-hour availability of a building representative, and notification to tenants of any disruption of essential services.
• Emergency safety plans for each building, proposed by landlords of multifamily dwellings, to be approved by the Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services.

The bill is cosponsored by Councilmembers Marilyn Balcombe, Laurie-Anne Sayles, Sidney Katz, Kristin Mink, Gabe Albornoz, Will Jawando, Evan Glass and Council President Andrew Friedson. View the full staff report here.

# # #

Release ID: 24-263
Media Contact: Cecily Thorne 301-910-0610
Categories: Kate Stewart