HB5241 - Relating to an action to remedy certain conditions affecting safety or habitability of certain residential rental property; providing a civil penalty.

  89R16768 SCR-F     By: Simmons H.B. No. 5241       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to an action to remedy certain conditions affecting safety   or habitability of certain residential rental property; providing a   civil penalty.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Title 4, Property Code, is amended by adding   Chapter 32 to read as follows:   CHAPTER 32.   ACTION TO REMEDY CONDITIONS AFFECTING SAFETY OR   HABITABILITY OF CERTAIN RESIDENTIAL RENTAL PROPERTY           Sec.   32.001.     DEFINITION. In this chapter, "residential   rental property" means a dwelling unit, as defined by Section   92.251, leased to a tenant and any common area that the tenant may   access under the lease.           Sec.   32.002.     APPLICABILITY. This chapter applies only to   residential rental property located in an unincorporated area of a   county with a population greater than one million.           Sec.   32.003.     CERTAIN CONDITIONS PROHIBITED. (a)   A   landlord may not maintain residential rental property to which this   chapter applies in an unsafe, unsanitary, or uninhabitable   condition.           (b)     For purposes of this section, residential rental   property is maintained in an unsafe, unsanitary, or uninhabitable   condition if:                 (1)     the property substantially lacks any of the   following features installed and maintained in a manner that   conforms to applicable law and that are kept in good working order:                       (A)  appliances;                       (B)     waterproofing and weather protection of the   roof and exterior walls;                       (C)     intact doors and windows with functioning   locks or other security devices;                       (D)     plumbing facilities and, if present and   necessary, gas facilities;                       (E)     running hot and cold water and sewage   disposal;                       (F)  heating and air conditioning;                       (G)  electrical lighting and power; or                       (H)     a sufficient number of exterior garbage   receptacles;                 (2)     common areas of the property are not kept   reasonably clean, sanitary, and safe;                 (3)     the property is infested by rodents, insects, or   other vermin and is not reasonably treated for the infestation;                 (4)     any floors, stairways, or railings are not   maintained in good repair;                 (5)  the property:                       (A)  contains harmful mold; or                       (B)     has a condition causing dampness to an extent   that, if not remedied, would materially interfere with the health   and safety of a tenant;                 (6)     the property is not maintained in compliance with   applicable laws or codes in a manner causing a material risk to the   health or safety of a tenant; or                 (7)     the property has any other condition that may   cause a material risk to the health and safety of a tenant.           Sec.   32.004.     NOTICE OF VIOLATION. (a)   Except as provided   by Subsection (b), before bringing an action against a landlord   under this chapter, a district attorney or county attorney must   send written notice to the landlord describing any condition listed   in Section 32.003 affecting the landlord's residential rental   property and notifying the landlord that the landlord must remedy   the condition not later than the 30th day after the date of   receiving notice.           (b)     Notice under this section is not required if such an   emergency exists that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or   damage would occur as a result of delay in obtaining a temporary   restraining order.           Sec.   32.005.     ENFORCEMENT ACTION. (a)   The district   attorney or county attorney may bring an action in the name of the   county against the landlord to restrain by temporary restraining   order, temporary injunction, or permanent injunction a violation of   Section 32.003.           (b)     The remediation of a condition of residential rental   property after receipt of a notice under Section 32.004 does not   cause an action under this section to become moot, and injunctive   relief is available in the action to restrain the condition   described in the notice.           (c)     In an action under this section, the district attorney   or county attorney may recover from the landlord a civil penalty in   an amount not to exceed $100 for each day on which the violation   that is the subject of the action exists. In determining the amount   of the violation, the court shall consider the seriousness of the   violation.           (d)     A county shall deposit 75 percent of any penalty   recovered under this section into the general fund of the county and   25 percent into the general revenue fund of the state.           (e)     In an action under this section, the court may make any   additional orders or judgments necessary to compensate   identifiable persons for actual damages resulting from the   condition that is the subject of the action or restore money or   property expended to remedy the condition, so long as the damages or   expenditures were not incurred more than four years before the   commencement of the action.           (f)     An action under this section must be brought not later   than the later of:                 (1)     four years after the date on which the condition   that is the subject of the action began; or                 (2)     four years after the date on which a tenant   discovered or in the exercise of reasonable diligence should have   discovered the condition.          SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.