| 1 | 1 | | By: Reynolds H.B. No. 4151 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | |
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| 6 | 6 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 7 | 7 | | AN ACT |
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| 8 | 8 | | relating to fair housing practices in the State of Texas, including |
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| 9 | 9 | | the consideration of criminal history in rental decisions. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Section 92.3515, Property Code, is amended by |
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| 12 | 12 | | amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as |
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| 13 | 13 | | Follows: |
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| 14 | 14 | | For the purposes of this section a landlord or a management |
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| 15 | 15 | | company is: the owner of a real property or management company that |
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| 16 | 16 | | has non-owner occupied rental units and the units are under their |
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| 17 | 17 | | control that are currently rented by active tenants. |
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| 18 | 18 | | (A) At the time an applicant is provided with a rental |
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| 19 | 19 | | application and before accepting an application fee, the landlord |
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| 20 | 20 | | shall make available to the applicant a printed notice or on the |
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| 21 | 21 | | leasing website the landlord's tenant selection criteria and the |
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| 22 | 22 | | grounds for which the rental application may be denied, including |
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| 23 | 23 | | the applicant's: |
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| 24 | 24 | | (1) criminal history; |
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| 25 | 25 | | (2) previous rental history; |
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| 26 | 26 | | (3) current income; |
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| 27 | 27 | | (4) credit history; or |
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| 28 | 28 | | (5) failure to provide accurate or complete |
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| 29 | 29 | | information on the application form. |
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| 30 | 30 | | (a-1) The printed notice must state in writing that |
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| 31 | 31 | | the Landlord must allow the applicant to provide evidence showing: |
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| 32 | 32 | | (1) the inaccuracies in the applicant's criminal |
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| 33 | 33 | | history, previous rental history, current income, credit history; |
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| 34 | 34 | | (2) the applicant's rehabilitation; or |
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| 35 | 35 | | (3) other mitigating factors. |
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| 36 | 36 | | (B) Criminal history: A landlord may only consider |
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| 37 | 37 | | the criminal history of an applicant in which the applicants |
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| 38 | 38 | | criminal history: |
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| 39 | 39 | | (a) Resulted in a conviction of a crime related |
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| 40 | 40 | | to Section 22.011.of the Texas Penal code |
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| 41 | 41 | | (b) Resulted in a conviction of a crime related |
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| 42 | 42 | | to Section Sec. 22.012.of the Texas Penal Code. |
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| 43 | 43 | | (c) Resulted in a conviction of a crime related |
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| 44 | 44 | | Section 22.021 of the Texas Penal Code. |
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| 45 | 45 | | (C) SUBSECTION (B) Does not apply where a federal law |
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| 46 | 46 | | mandates the denial of housing based on certain types of criminal |
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| 47 | 47 | | history. |
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| 48 | 48 | | SECTION 2. Section 92.354, Property Code, is amended to |
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| 49 | 49 | | read as follows: |
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| 50 | 50 | | Sec. 92.354. LIABILITY OF LANDLORD. (a) A landlord who in |
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| 51 | 51 | | bad faith fails to refund an application fee or deposit in violation |
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| 52 | 52 | | of this subchapter is liable for an amount equal to the sum of $100, |
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| 53 | 53 | | three times the amount wrongfully retained, and the applicant's |
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| 54 | 54 | | reasonable attorney's fees. |
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| 55 | 55 | | (b) A landlord who violates Section 92.3515 is liable for an |
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| 56 | 56 | | amount equal to the sum of $500 and the applicant's reasonable |
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| 57 | 57 | | attorney's fees. |
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| 58 | 58 | | SECTION 3. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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| 59 | 59 | | a lease or rental application submitted on or after the effective |
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| 60 | 60 | | date of this Act. A lease or rental application submitted before |
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| 61 | 61 | | the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect |
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| 62 | 62 | | immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the former |
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| 63 | 63 | | law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 64 | 64 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025. |
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