Bill > SB294

This bill requires landlords to provide tenants with detailed records of their utility charges when terminating a rental agreement due to noncompliance or health and safety violations, and mandates that landlords maintain and provide tenants with access to records showing how monthly energy and utility fees are calculated, including a history of payments, and removes any fees previously associated with tenants requesting these records. Specifically, when a landlord serves a tenant with a notice to terminate a rental agreement for material noncompliance or certain health and safety violations, they must now provide a written statement detailing all debits and credits incurred by the tenant. If the rental agreement uses submetering equipment (devices that measure individual unit utility usage), energy allocation equipment (systems that distribute utility costs), or a ratio utility billing system (a method to divide utility bills among tenants based on a formula), the landlord must also include in this statement any debits and credits related to energy and utility bills, as well as any permitted additional charges. Furthermore, building owners must keep thorough records of how tenant utility bills are calculated and a history of tenant payments for at least the past 12 months or the duration of the tenancy, whichever is shorter, and make these records available to tenants upon request, without charging for copies.

Housing and Urban Affairs, Justice

https://lis.virginia.gov/bill-details/20261/SB294