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HB 1496

Cities and towns; board of adjustment; decisions of the board; final subject to judicial review; appeal to the council; effective date.

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Brian Guthrie

North Dakota landlords must keep premises habitable, maintain utilities and safety, with a defined reasonable heat standard, while allowing limited tenant maintenance under strict,

Second Reading referred to Judiciary
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Bill Summary · HB 1496

Summary — HB 1496 (North Dakota): Amend NDCC § 47‑16‑13.1 — Landlord obligations / maintenance of premises

Status & sponsors
- Introduced: December 3, 2024. Sponsored by Representatives Foss, Schneider, Hendrix, Hanson and Senators Braunberger, Boschee, Barta, Cory (per bill text package).
- Committee action: Adopted by the Agriculture Committee (Feb. 6, 2025).
- Reported status (provided): Second reading, failed to pass (yeas 11, nays 35).

Purpose
- To amend and reenact North Dakota Century Code § 47‑16‑13.1 to clarify and restate landlord maintenance duties for residential dwelling units and to set standards for tenant/landlord agreements reallocating certain maintenance responsibilities.

Key provisions and changes
- Restates and clarifies landlord duties (subsection 1):
- Comply with applicable building and housing codes that materially affect health and safety.
- Make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to keep premises fit and habitable.
- Keep common areas clean and safe.
- Maintain in good and safe working order all electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating, air‑conditioning and other facilities and appliances supplied or required to be supplied by the landlord (including elevators).
- Provide and maintain appropriate receptacles/conveniences for removal of ashes, garbage, rubbish and other waste and arrange for their removal.
- Supply running water, reasonable amounts of hot water at all times, and “reasonable heat,” with narrow exceptions (see Definitions below) — except where heat or hot water is generated within tenant control or unavailable due to public utility supply failure.

  • Remedy period:

    • If landlord fails to comply with the repairs/maintenance duties listed above, a reasonable time must be allowed to remedy the noncompliance (no fixed number of days specified in the bill text).

  • Tenant performance of landlord duties:

    • Single‑family residence: landlord and tenant may agree in writing that the tenant will perform the landlord’s duties related to waste removal (subdivision e) and supply of heat/hot water (subdivision f), and may also agree that tenant will perform specified repairs, maintenance tasks, alterations or remodeling — but only if the transaction is entered into in good faith.
    • Dwelling units other than single‑family: tenant may perform specified repairs/maintenance/alterations only under stricter conditions (separate written agreement signed by parties, supported by adequate consideration, not diminishing landlord’s obligations to other tenants, the work is not needed to cure a landlord violation of waste removal, entered into in good faith). The bill also specifies that a landlord may not condition rental performance on the tenant performing such an agreement.

Definitions / standards
- “Reasonable heat” is defined in the bill:
- Oct 1 — Apr 30: temperature not less than 68°F (20°C).
- May 1 — Sep 30: a temperature appropriate for seasonal conditions of the region in which the property is located.

Who is affected
- Primary effects: landlords and tenants of residential dwelling units in North Dakota — including owners/managers of multi‑unit properties and single‑family rentals.
- Secondary effects: local code enforcement entities (to the extent they handle complaints or enforcement), and renters seeking to negotiate written maintenance agreements.

Procedural / timeline notes
- The bill amends and reenacts an existing statutory section (47‑16‑13.1) — not merely a technical fix.
- According to the status provided with your materials, HB 1496 reached second reading but failed to pass (yeas 11, nays 35). If reenacted in a later version or reintroduced, the same substantive elements (landlord maintenance duties, definition of reasonable heat, conditions for tenant performance of landlord duties) would be the central elements for consideration.

Impact and considerations
- Clarifies explicit landlord responsibilities and sets a clear minimum indoor temperature standard for the heating season, which may reduce disputes over habitability.
- Continues to allow contractual shifting of limited duties to tenants but imposes formal requirements intended to prevent coercive or unwritten arrangements.
- Enforcement depends on existing remedies and local enforcement; the bill does not specify new penalties or a fixed cure period beyond “reasonable time.”

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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