Fri. Nov 15th, 2024

William Lawrence, state coordinator for the Rent is too Damn High Coalition welcomes housing advocates from across the state to a gathering at Lansing’s Central United Methodist Church on Nov. 13, 2024. | Kyle Davidson

After more than 100 organizations submitted a letter to Michigan’s elected leaders calling for the passage of the Fair Chance Housing Act, housing advocates from across the state gathered in Lansing to continue their push to reform the state laws around landlords and tenants. 

Advocates met downtown at the Central United Methodist church Wednesday, to discuss various bills supporting tenants and ensuring access to housing before taking steps to pressure lawmakers for their passage and calling for their passage at the state Capitol.

“If you don’t understand what homelessness has to do with any of these bills, you really don’t understand the issue. Because if you do not have a roof over your head, you lose your ability to a livelihood. You cannot work, you cannot pay your bills, you cannot feed your body, you can’t do anything if you do not have a roof over your head, so it has a direct impact on homelessness and housing insecurity,” said Rosey White, a housing advocate from Detroit. 

Alongside the Fair Chance Access to Housing Act, House Bill 4878, which would generally prohibit a landlord from taking an individual’s criminal record into account when evaluating a prospective tenant’s application, advocates discussed efforts to eliminate Housing Discrimination based on source of income, allow for eviction record expungement, guarantee tenants the right to organize, guaranteeing tenants right to legal counsel, the right to repair your apartment and deduct the costs from rent, banning junk fees and multiple other policies.

The Rent is Too Damn High Coalition’s ‘housing homestretch’ bills

  • House Bills 40624063 and Senate Bills 205207: These bills would bar landlords and people engaging in real estate transactions from discriminating against a person due to their source of income and allow individuals facing this kind of discrimination to seek damages.
  • Senate Bill 801: This bill allows for an individual to have their eviction record expunged. 
  • Senate Bills 900903: These bills ensure tenants have the right to organize and form a tenant’s union, alongside the right to make repairs to their apartment and deduct the cost from rent. 
  • House Bill 4878: Generally prohibits a landlord from taking an individual’s criminal record into account when evaluating a prospective tenant’s application.
  • House Bills 51575163 and Senate Bills 486492: These bills make a number of changes to the state’s laws on mobile home parks, including establishing licensing requirements, limiting rent increases, and tightening water and safety regulations. 
  • Senate Bill 661: Creates limitations on the fees charged to tenants. 
  • House Bills 52375238: Ensures income-eligible tenants have a right to a court-appointed attorney in tenant-landlord cases. 
  • House Bill 5605:Allows for the reuse of certain screening reports when applying for a rental and creating additional requirements for landlords in reviewing rental applications. 
  • House Bill 5756: Prohibits steep rent increase and denying lease renewal to tenants with good standing. 

 

“We haven’t seen action on these bills from Democratic leadership. Bills that would impact three million renters in the state of Michigan are stuck in committee. They’re just sitting there. And now the Democrats have lost the House of Representatives in the recent election, which means that time is running out,” said William Lawrence, state coordinator for the Rent is Too Damn High Coalition.

Democrats control both chambers of the Legislature. Republicans won a majority in the House for the next term starting in January.

House Floor Leader Abraham Aiyash (D-Hamtramck), who sponsored the Fair Chance Housing Act, encouraged individuals struggling with housing to keep sharing their stories as the clock runs out on Democrats’ control of the House. 

“If they’re not going to take the time to listen to their districts, we’re going to bring the districts to Lansing, and you’re going to share these stories with these politicians in Lansing, because if they are too busy to have coffee hours or too busy to take your phone calls or to busy to answer email, you’re going to make sure they have time to see and tell you to your face,” Aiyash said. 

Aiyash did not run for reelection this year.

In addition to breaking down the bills many speakers shared their experiences struggling with Housing. 

Jessica Henry, the senior programs manager of Nation Outside, a group advocating for the formerly incarcerated individuals, shared her continued difficulty in finding housing after being incarcerated for nine of her 42 years of life. 

Despite completing her master’s degree in December, Henry said she still lives in student housing. 

“It was a rough go trying to get on campus there, but they accepted me because they knew who I was. They knew the changes that I was making to my life. I had already been a student there for a year. But guess what? When I’m not a student, I don’t have anywhere to live. I have to go back through the process of filling out applications and paying $50 each time, going ahead and coming and knowing I’m going to get denied, even though I have a great credit score,” Henry said. 

“There’s so many people out here who are trying to change their lives, but keep continuing to get held back by our system,” Henry said. 

Holly Hook of Manufactured Housing Action said in recent years, out-of-state private equity firms have been buying up communities of manufactured homes, like hers. While the previous mom and pop owners of her community were helpful and kept the rent of their lots affordable, the new owners are raising the rent higher and higher, tacking on fees as issues with water quality emerge. 

“I’ve seen very scary water coming out of people’s taps. I’ve seen the rainbow from brown to yellow to gray. It’s terrifying. … Worst of all, this is happening to veterans. It’s happening to senior citizens who are on fixed incomes. It’s happening to hard-working families,” Hook said. 

“I know people who are going to be homeless in the next rent increase. I know a guy who turns on his tap, the water comes out brown, and he’s paying more and more rent to a corporate manager,” Hook said.

Following speeches from advocates and a working lunch, attendees marched to the Capitol, gathering on multiple floors of the rotunda. They chanted, “The rent is too damn high,” and “No excuses, no excuses, show the people you’re not useless,” among other statements, while occasionally breaking for additional speeches. 

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