Bill > A00257

This bill establishes the Tenancy Deposit Protection Program within the Division of Housing and Community Renewal. The program will require landlords to place tenant security deposits or advances in a third-party custodian and arbiter system, where interest will accrue. The program will include a process for returning security deposits, require landlords to make agreements with tenants regarding any withholding of deposits, and establish a dispute resolution service for disagreements over deposit withholding. Landlords who fail to place deposits in the program will be subject to civil fines. The bill also makes any provision in a contract or agreement that waives these requirements void.