Better Housing | Brian King for Utah
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BETTER HOUSING

  • This bill establishes a period of time by which a landlord must provide a notice of rent increase to a tenant.

  • Repeals provisions requiring certain counties to implement plans for creating a housing and transit reinvestment zone as a strategy to increase moderate-income housing.

  • This bill requires an owner of a residential rental unit to make certain disclosures to a potential renter before accepting an application fee or any other payment; prohibits an owner from charging a renter under a rental agreement a fee, tax, assessment, interest, or other cost: that is not disclosed in the rental agreement, except under certain conditions; or in an amount greater than agreed to in the rental agreement; permits a prospective renter to seek reimbursement from an owner under certain conditions; prohibits an owner from charging a late fee that exceeds a certain amount. 

  • This bill amends an owner’s duties under the Utah Fit Premises Act.
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  • This bill amends provisions related to the Housing and Community Development Division to increase access to affordable housing. 

     

  • This bill:

    • prohibits a municipality from requiring a residential landlord to deny tenancy to an individual based on the individual's criminal history.

    • restricts municipalities from imposing disproportionate rental fees on certain types of residential units or landlords

    • establishes provisions for a "good landlord training program" offered by municipalities. Residential landlords who participate may be eligible for a reduction in disproportionate rental fees.

  • This bill enacts and modifies provisions relating to temporary homeless youth shelters. This bill grants the Office of Licensing rulemaking authority to make rules establishing age-appropriate and gender-appropriate sleeping quarters in temporary homeless youth shelters; requires a temporary homeless youth shelter to notify the Division of Child and Family Services or a youth services center within 48 hours after the later of the time that the temporary homeless youth shelter becomes aware that the minor is a runaway; or the time that the temporary homeless youth shelter begins harboring the minor. 

  • This bill enacts tax credits for employing a homeless person.

LEGISLATIVE HIGHLIGHTS

PUBLIC OPINION DATA

Over the last few years, housing costs in Utah have skyrocketed, putting the American dream of homeownership out of reach for many Utahns, and leaving many families struggling to make ends meet. If we want our children and grandchildren to be able to stay in Utah and raise their families here, we need to take action to address the housing crisis and give young Utahns the opportunity to buy a home, put down roots in their community, and build a life.

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As Governor, Brian King will support:

  • Expanding programs to support first-time home buyers, new builds, and existing homes.

  • Incentivizing the construction of thousands of starter homes and affordable housing units across the state, both single-family and multi-family.

  • Encouraging cities to adjust outdated restrictions on density where it makes sense to do so.

  • Investing in affordable housing not just on the Wasatch Front, but in rural communities across the state.

  • Expand voucher program/direct assistance for renters, create incentives to sell available housing stock to people who live and work in Utah (under a certain income level) rather than out-of-state investors, a vacancy tax for units and houses that sit empty or a tax on purchasers from other states buying second and third homes to prioritize Utah housing for Utahns who live and work here.  

  • Incentivize more transit-oriented planning and development to increase the use of mass transit.

  • Work to put in place more protection for renters and more fairly balance their rights to prevent overreaching by unscrupulous landlords.

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