Fiscal impact reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative Finance Committee (LFC) for standing finance
committees of the Legislature. LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports if they
are used for other purposes.
F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T
SPONSOR Romero, A/Rubio
LAST UPDATED
ORIGINAL DATE 2/3/2025
SHORT TITLE No Use of AI for Rent Manipulation
BILL
NUMBER House Bill 215
ANALYST Ortega
ESTIMATED ADDITIONAL OPERATING BUDGET IMPACT*
(dollars in thousands)
Agency/Program
FY25 FY26 FY27
3 Year
Total Cost
Recurring or
Nonrecurring
Fund
Affected
NMAG
No fiscal
impact
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
No fiscal
impact
Recurring General Fund
AOC
No fiscal
impact
Indeterminate
but minimal
Indeterminate
but minimal
No fiscal
impact
Recurring General Fund
Parentheses ( ) indicate expenditure decreases.
*Amounts reflect most recent analysis of this legislation.
Sources of Information
LFC Files
Agency Analysis Received From
Department of Finance and Administration (DFA)
New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (MFA)
Agency Analysis was Solicited but Not Received From
Court of Appeals Supreme Court (NMSC) Attorney General (NMAG) New Mexico Counties New Mexico Municipal League (NMML) Agency Declined to Respond
Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of House Bill 215
House Bill 215 (HB215) amends the Uniform Owner-Resident Relations Act to prohibit the use
of artificial intelligence (AI) in rental price coordination. The bill defines “coordinating
function” as collecting, analyzing, and computationally processing, including using to train an
algorithm/AI, data on historical or contemporaneous prices, supply levels, or lease or rental
contract termination and renewal dates of dwelling units from two or more rental property
owners in order to recommend rent prices, lease renewal terms, or occupancy levels to owners.
The bill defines “coordinator” to mean a software or data analytics service that performs a House Bill 215 – Page 2
coordinating function for an owner, including services performed by a rental property owner for
their own benefit.
HB215 prohibits owners or agents of owners from subscribing to or contracting the services of a
coordinator, coordinators from facilitating an agreement among owners of separate properties to
restrict competition (including by providing a coordinating function), and rental property owners
from tacitly agreeing to raise, lower, change, maintain, or manipulate the price of rent for their
separate properties.
Individuals harmed by violations of this law would have the right to seek legal action in court.
This bill does not contain an effective date and, as a result, would go into effect 90 days after the
Legislature adjourns if enacted, or June 20, 2025.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
HB215 does not include an appropriation for its implementation but may have a fiscal impact on
state agencies responsible for enforcement and the judicial system. The New Mexico Attorney
General or other regulatory entities may incur costs related to monitoring compliance and
investigating violations. Additionally, the court system could experience increased caseloads due
to the bill’s provision allowing individuals to sue for violations.
While the exact number of cases that may arise is uncertain, increased enforcement efforts and
legal proceedings could require additional resources. The extent of these costs would depend on
how frequently violations occur and how aggressively enforcement actions are pursued.
SIGNIFICANT ISSUES
The Department of Finance and Administration (DFA) notes that concerns over AI-driven rent
pricing coordination gained national attention when the U.S. Department of Justice and several
states filed an antitrust lawsuit against RealPage and major landlords in 2024. The lawsuit
alleges that RealPage facilitated price coordination by collecting and analyzing rental data from
competing landlords to generate algorithmic pricing recommendations. DFA points out that
while the case is ongoing, its outcome remains uncertain, and federal enforcement efforts may
shift under a new presidential administration. DFA believes that enacting HB215 would provide
state-level enforcement to address these concerns within New Mexico.
The New Mexico Mortgage Finance Authority (MFA) highlights that several jurisdictions,
including San Francisco, Philadelphia, and Virginia, have enacted or proposed similar bans on
AI-driven rental pricing tools. According to MFA, these bans are intended to prevent landlords
from using algorithmic software to coordinate rental prices, which can lead to artificially inflated
housing costs. However, MFA also notes that critics argue such restrictions could discourage
investment in the rental housing market by creating regulatory uncertainty and limiting
landlords’ ability to use data-driven pricing strategies.
MFA also notes that, “Demonstrating that landlords are engaging in price-fixing through AI tools
is legally complex. Traditional antitrust laws require evidence of explicit agreements between
parties, but AI algorithms can facilitate implicit coordination without direct communication,
complicating enforcement efforts.”
House Bill 215 – Page 3
OTHER SUBSTANT IVE ISSUES
DFA notes, “There are not requirements to include the law in trainings or to provide notification
to rental property owners. It may be useful to require a relevant agency to provide trainings or
put out information in order to inform landlords of this new law.”
ALTERNATIVES
DFA suggests, “Other possibilities to protect tenants from rental property owners seeking
excessive rents include rent control or [rent] stabilization laws. These would have to be carefully
designed to achieve the objective for tenants and not suppress the production of new rental
properties.”
AO/rl