Rental Housing Safety
The Honorable Phil Scott
Governor, State of Vermont
109 State Street, Pavilion
Montpelier, VT 05609
The Honorable Becca Balint
Senate President Pro Tempore
115 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05633
The Honorable Jill Krowinski
House Majority Leader
115 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05633
Dear Governor Scott, Senator Balint, and Representative Krowinski,
We, the undersigned Town Health Officers and Town Planners, are writing to express our concerns about the challenges we face in the enforcement and appropriate completion of housing inspections that ensure the health and safety of Vermont renters in our communities.
A Rental Housing Safety Bill is needed that takes important steps to ensure professional, uniform, and statewide enforcement of Vermont’s existing Rental Housing Health Code. As you know, Vermont has some of the oldest housing stock in the nation. Town Health Officers, especially in small rural communities, are often volunteers. We have a wide breadth of responsibilities and often lack sufficient resources and training to respond to complaints from renters. If violations are found, we often do not have the resources to enforce the law. Code enforcement can be especially challenging with absentee landlords who live outside of Vermont. By creating a professional level of inspection and enforcement at the state level, Vermont can ensure that all renters have access to fair and timely response to housing safety concerns.
The Rental Housing Safety Bill also will provide an essential resource for town planning. Currently, there is no system to accurately evaluate the distribution of owned residences, long-term rentals, and short-term rental properties that exist in our communities. Understanding the composition of housing options that exist provides an essential tool for planning future development. Creating a registry would meet this need, while also providing a means for more targeted communications with property owners.
Several cities in Vermont, including Burlington, Barre, and Winooski, have both rental registries and paid staff to respond to renter complaints. Expanding these tools to smaller, more rural communities will remove burden from under-resourced towns while ensuring safe living conditions for renters.
Sincerely,
VT League of Cities and Towns
Sign PetitionSign PetitionGovernor, State of Vermont
109 State Street, Pavilion
Montpelier, VT 05609
The Honorable Becca Balint
Senate President Pro Tempore
115 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05633
The Honorable Jill Krowinski
House Majority Leader
115 State Street
Montpelier, VT 05633
Dear Governor Scott, Senator Balint, and Representative Krowinski,
We, the undersigned Town Health Officers and Town Planners, are writing to express our concerns about the challenges we face in the enforcement and appropriate completion of housing inspections that ensure the health and safety of Vermont renters in our communities.
A Rental Housing Safety Bill is needed that takes important steps to ensure professional, uniform, and statewide enforcement of Vermont’s existing Rental Housing Health Code. As you know, Vermont has some of the oldest housing stock in the nation. Town Health Officers, especially in small rural communities, are often volunteers. We have a wide breadth of responsibilities and often lack sufficient resources and training to respond to complaints from renters. If violations are found, we often do not have the resources to enforce the law. Code enforcement can be especially challenging with absentee landlords who live outside of Vermont. By creating a professional level of inspection and enforcement at the state level, Vermont can ensure that all renters have access to fair and timely response to housing safety concerns.
The Rental Housing Safety Bill also will provide an essential resource for town planning. Currently, there is no system to accurately evaluate the distribution of owned residences, long-term rentals, and short-term rental properties that exist in our communities. Understanding the composition of housing options that exist provides an essential tool for planning future development. Creating a registry would meet this need, while also providing a means for more targeted communications with property owners.
Several cities in Vermont, including Burlington, Barre, and Winooski, have both rental registries and paid staff to respond to renter complaints. Expanding these tools to smaller, more rural communities will remove burden from under-resourced towns while ensuring safe living conditions for renters.
Sincerely,
VT League of Cities and Towns
See more petitions:
You have JavaScript disabled. Without it, our site might not function properly.
By signing, you accept Care2's Terms of Service.
You can unsub at any time here.
Having problems signing this? Let us know.