A1078

An Act concerning the provision of eviction prevention information and amending P.L.1975, c.310.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 2 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-44) is amended to read as follows:

2. As used in this act:

a. "Landlord" means any person who rents or leases or offers to rent or lease, for a term of at least one month, dwelling units, except dwelling units in [rental premises containing not more than two such units, or in] owner-occupied premises of not more than three dwelling units, or in hotels, motels or other guest houses serving transient or seasonal guests.

b. "Department" means the Department of Community Affairs.

c. "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Community Affairs.

d. "Electronic funds transfer" means a transfer of funds, other than a transaction originated by check, draft, or similar paper instrument, that is initiated through an electronic terminal, telephone, computer, or magnetic tape for the purpose of ordering, instructing, or authorizing a financial institution to debit or credit a consumer's account, including, but not limited to, through the use of an automated clearinghouse (ACH) system.

(cf: P.L.2019, c.300, s.1)

2. Section 3 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-45) is amended to read as follows:

3. a. (1) The department shall, as soon as practicable and annually thereafter, after public hearing, prepare and make available at no cost to the public, to the extent that funding has been made available to the department for free distribution, [a statement,] in a form and size suitable for posting and distributing pursuant to the provisions of [this act,] P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-43 et seq.), a statement of the primary clearly established legal rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords of rental dwelling units including, but not limited to, information and resources to assist tenants and landlords in avoiding eviction, which eviction avoidance information shall be made available both in the statement, and separately as a pamphlet, flyer, electronic document, or in any other form determined appropriate by the commissioner.

[This] (2) The statement and separate eviction avoidance information, distributed pursuant to this section, shall be printed in both the English and Spanish languages and shall be posted on the department's Internet website, in an easily printable format, and updated annually. The statement and separate eviction avoidance information shall serve as [an] informational [document] documents, and nothing therein shall be construed as binding on or affecting a judicial determination under section 6 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-48) of what constitutes a lease provision which violates clearly established legal rights of tenants or responsibilities of landlords.

b. Where practical considerations make it necessary for the department to limit the extent of the statement or separate eviction avoidance information, items to be included shall be selected on the basis of the importance of their inclusion in protecting the rights of the public. The department shall, upon a good faith request by a tenant or landlord, provide the statement, the separate eviction avoidance information, or both, to the tenant or landlord, by mail or electronic mail.

c. The eviction avoidance information distributed pursuant to paragraph (1) of subsection a. of this section shall list resources that may be beneficial for the purpose of preventing eviction, and information on how to access each resource, which shall include, but shall not be limited to:

(1) the New Jersey Eviction Guide, produced by the department, for the purpose of providing interactive guidance on avoiding eviction;

(2) pertinent information made available by, and contact information for, the Office of Eviction Prevention established pursuant to section 5 of P.L.2021, c.188 (C.52:27D-287.11);

(3) pertinent information concerning the "Eviction Prevention Program," established pursuant to section 4 of P.L.2021, c.188 (C.52:27D-287.10); and

(4) local court vicinage information for the Comprehensive Court Eviction Defense and Diversion program.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.177, s.1)

3. Section 4 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-46) is amended to read as follows:

4. a. Every landlord shall distribute one copy of the statement and separate eviction avoidance information prepared and made available pursuant to the provisions of [this act] P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-43 et seq.) to each of their tenants within 30 days after [it] each has been made available by the department and shall thereafter provide a copy of the current statement and separate eviction avoidance information to each new tenant at or prior to the time [he] the tenant assumes occupancy of the dwelling, and at or prior to the time of each lease renewal. In addition, every landlord shall keep a copy of the current statement and separate eviction avoidance information posted in one or more locations, in accordance with the rules and regulations of the commissioner, so that the statement [is] and separate eviction avoidance information are prominent and accessible to all [his] of the landlord’s tenants.

b. Upon receipt of the statement and separate eviction avoidance information, the tenant shall sign an acknowledgement of receipt for the landlord to maintain as a record to demonstrate compliance with this section.

(cf: P.L.1975, c.310, s.4)

4. Section 5 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-47) is amended to read as follows:

5. Any landlord who violates any provision of [this act] P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-43 et seq.), contrary to the legal rights of tenants, shall be liable to a penalty of [not more than $100.00] $1,000 for each offense. Such penalty shall be collected and enforced by summary proceedings pursuant to ["the penalty enforcement law" (N.J.S.2A:58-1 et seq.)] the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.). The tenant shall be permitted to recover the penalty, reasonable attorney’s fees, court costs, expenses for expert witnesses, and other related fees and expenses incurred in proving a violation of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-43 et seq.). The Superior Court, Law Division, Special Civil Part in the county in which the rental premises are located shall have jurisdiction over such proceedings. Process shall be in the nature of a summons or warrant, and shall issue upon the complaint of the commissioner, the Attorney General, or any other person.

(cf: P.L.1991, c.91, s.460)

5. Section 7 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-49) is amended to read as follows:

7. No waiver or refusal by a tenant of [his] the tenant’s right to receive a copy of the statement or separate eviction avoidance information as provided herein shall alter the responsibilities of the landlord under any provision of [this act] P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-43 et seq.).

(cf: P.L.1975, c.310, s.7)

6. On or before the first day of the third month next following enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), the Commissioner of Community Affairs shall adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations to effectuate the provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

7. This act shall take effect on the first day of the third month next following enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill requires landlords to distribute certain eviction prevention information and resources to their tenants.

Pursuant to "The Truth-in-Renting Act" (Truth-in-Renting Act) P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-43 et seq.) a landlord is currently required to distribute to a residential tenant, at or prior to the time when the tenant assumes occupancy of a rental unit, a statement of the legal rights and responsibilities of landlords and tenants. In addition to providing this statement, the bill requires the landlord to provide to the tenant certain information and resources, as produced by the Department of Community Affairs (DCA), to assist tenants and landlords in avoiding eviction. In addition to the documents being provided at the beginning of an occupancy, the bill also requires the statement and separate eviction avoidance information to be provided at or prior to the time of each lease renewal. Upon receipt of the statement and separate eviction avoidance information, the bill requires the tenant to sign an acknowledgement of receipt for the landlord to maintain as a record to demonstrate compliance with the provisions of the bill.

The bill changes the definition of a "landlord" for the purposes of the Truth-in-Renting Act to mean any person who rents or leases or offers to rent or lease, for a term of at least one month, dwelling units, except dwelling units in owner-occupied premises of not more than three dwelling units, or in hotels, motels or other guest houses serving transient or seasonal guests. This change would require landlords of non-owner occupied rental premises containing one or two dwelling units, who are currently excluded from the responsibilities of the Truth-in-Renting Act, to begin complying with the statute.

In producing the eviction avoidance information required by the bill, DCA is to list resources that may be beneficial for the purpose of preventing eviction, and information on how to access each resource, including but not limited to:

· the New Jersey Eviction Guide, produced by the DCA, to provide interactive guidance on avoiding eviction;

· information made available by, and contact information for, the State’s Office of Eviction Prevention;

· information concerning the State’s "Eviction Prevention Program;" and

· local court vicinage information for the Comprehensive Court Eviction Defense and Diversion program.

This bill also increases the penalty against a landlord who violates the Truth-in-Renting Act from $100 to $1,000 for each offense, and permits a tenant to recover reasonable attorney’s fees, court costs, expenses for expert witnesses, and other related fees and expenses incurred in proving the violation. This is reflective of the increase in median rent price in the State from 1975, when the penalty was established, to 2024 data.

The bill requires the Commissioner of Community Affairs, to adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the provisions of the bill on or before the effective date of the bill on the first day of the third month following enactment.