Trial Engrossment of Amendment A00091 to House Bill 0734 P.N. 0758, Regular Session 2025-2026

A00091

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

No.

734

Session of

2025

INTRODUCED BY MADSEN, HOWARD, RABB, SANCHEZ, SCHLOSSBERG, HILL-

EVANS, FIEDLER, CIRESI, McANDREW, FLEMING, OTTEN, DEASY AND

GREEN, FEBRUARY 25, 2025

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON HOUSING AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT,

FEBRUARY 25, 2025

AN ACT

Amending the act of April 6, 1951 (P.L.69, No.20), entitled "An

act relating to the rights, obligations and liabilities of

landlord and tenant and of parties dealing with them and

amending, revising, changing and consolidating the law

relating thereto," in tenement buildings and multiple

dwelling premises, further providing for landlord's duties;

and providing for tenant relocation.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1. Section 502-A of the act of April 6, 1951

(P.L.69, No.20), known as The Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951,

is amended to read:

Section 502-A. Landlord's Duties.--(a) The retention of

control of the stairways, passages, roadways and other common

facilities of a tenement building or multiple dwelling premises

places upon the landlord, or other possessor, the duty of

reasonable care for safety in use. This responsibility of the

landlord extends not alone to the individual tenant, but also to

his family, servants and employees, business visitors, social

guests, and the like. Those who enter in the right of the

tenant, even though under his mere license, make a permissible

use of the premises for which the common ways and facilities are

provided.

(b) The landlord shall provide a tenant a habitable

dwelling.

Section 2. The act is amended by adding an article to read:

ARTICLE V-C

TENANT RELOCATION

Section 501-C. Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this article

shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Displaced tenant." A temporarily displaced tenant or a

permanently displaced tenant.

"Permanently displaced tenant." A tenant that is required to

and does vacate rental housing for 60 days or more because the

rental housing is condemned as unfit for human habitation by a

municipality or determined to be uninhabitable by another

governmental entity with oversight of the property through no

fault of the tenant.

"Temporarily displaced tenant." A tenant that is required to

and does vacate rental housing for less than 60 days because the

rental housing is condemned as unfit for human habitation by a

municipality or determined to be uninhabitable by another

governmental entity with oversight of the property through no

fault of the tenant.

Section 502-C. T emporary displacement.

(a) Requirement.--For a temporarily displaced tenant, a

landlord shall comply with the provisions of this section within

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60 hours of the posting of condemnation on the rental housing.

(b) Alternative offer from landlord.--

(1) For a temporarily displaced tenant, a landlord may

offer any alternative available dwelling unit of comparable

size and rental price for the temporarily displaced tenant

and the temporarily displaced tenant's belongings for the

full temporarily displaced period.

(2) A temporary displacement period shall not exceed 60

days.

(3) If a displaced tenant accepts a landlord's offer of

an available dwelling unit under this subsection for the

remainder of the temporary displacement period, the landlord

shall have no other requirements under this article.

(1) At the beginning of a temporary displacement period,

a landlord shall either:

(i) provide p ayment for the costs of the immediate

relocation of the temporarily displaced tenant and the

tenant's belongings; or

(ii) with the tenant's written approval, move the

tenant's belongings at the landlord's expense.

(2) At the end of a temporary displacement period, a

landlord shall either:

(i) provide payment for the costs to move the

temporarily displaced tenant and the temporarily

displaced tenant's belongings back to the tenant's

original rental housing; or

(ii) with the tenant's written approval, move the

tenant's belongings.

(d) Lease terms.--If a temporarily displaced tenant returns

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to the tenant's original housing, all lease provisions,

including provisions regarding the length of the lease term and

the amount of rent due at the time of the displacement shall

remain in place for the remainder of the lease in effect at the

time of the tenant's displacement.

Section 503-C. Permanent displacement.

If a tenant has been displaced for more than 60 days, the

tenant shall be considered a permanently displaced tenant.

Within 72 hours of the 60th day of displacement, the landlord

shall pay, by check or money order, the following to a

permanently displaced tenant:

(1) The permanently displaced tenant's security deposit

with interest in accordance with sections 5 11.1 and 511.2 . If

the permanently displaced tenant had unpaid debts or

arrearages owed to the landlord prior to the rental housing

becoming uninhabitable, a landlord may use the security

deposit to recoup the unpaid debts or arrearages. The

remainder of the security deposit, after the unpaid debt or

arrearage has been collected with interest, shall be returned

to the permanently displaced tenant.

(2) Any pro rata rent for the remainder of the month.

Section 504-C. Landlord tenant agreement.

A landlord and a displaced tenant may agree to an

arrangement, including:

(1) The tenant shall have the first right of refusal

when the original rental housing is made habitable.

(2) A landlord may offer to a displaced tenant any

available dwelling unit of comparable size and rental price

for the remainder of the lease period. If the tenant accepts

an arrangement of the dwelling unit under this paragraph, the

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landlord shall have no other requirements under this article.

(3) A landlord may offer to a displaced tenant to be

released from the requirements of the written lease early if

the rental housing will not be made habitable by the end of

the original lease agreement. If a displaced tenant agrees to

being released from the lease early, in writing, a landlord

shall have no other requirements under this article.

Section 505-C. Proof of compliance.

Within five days after a tenant vacates the rental housing, a

landlord shall provide the local housing authority or

municipality with a letter stating that the landlord and the

tenant have reached an agreement .

Section 506-C. First right to reoccupy.

A landlord shall provide a permanently displaced tenant with

the first right to reoccupy rental housing once the rental

housing becomes habitable and is compliant with all municipal

codes. The following shall apply:

(1) A landlord shall provide a permanently displaced

tenant with written notice of the tenant's first right to

reoccupy.

(2) The notice provided by the landlord shall include

the landlord's current address and telephone number which the

permanently displaced tenant can use to contact the landlord.

(3) It is the responsibility of the permanently

displaced tenant to provide the landlord with the permanently

displaced tenant's current address and telephone number to be

used for future notification.

(4) When the rental unit becomes habitable, the landlord

shall give written notice by certified mail to the

permanently displaced tenant informing the tenant that the

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rental housing is habitable and ready to be occupied.

(5) A permanently displaced tenant shall notify a

landlord of the tenant's intent to reoccupy the rental

housing no later than five days after receipt of the

certified letter notifying the tenant that the rental housing

is ready to be occupied.

(6) A permanently displaced tenant must reoccupy the

rental housing within 30 days after the tenant notifies the

landlord of the tenant's intent to reoccupy the rental

housing.

(7) A permanently displaced tenant may waive the right

to reoccupy the rental housing at any time after displacement

from the rental housing.

Section 507-C. Applicability.

This article shall not apply to either of the following:

(1) A landlord or managing agent who:

(i) resides in this Commonwealth and operates less

than 15 residential dwelling units within this

Commonwealth;

(ii) employs an on-site property management team

within this Commonwealth;

(iii) employs an on-site property maintenance team

within this Commonwealth; or

(iv) has entered into an agreement with a third-

party property management company or property maintenance

team within this Commonwealth.

(2) If the rental housing is condemned due to:

(i) events that are beyond the control of the

landlord, including fires, water damage, natural

disasters or acts of God; or

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(ii) damages that are the result of the lack of

maintenance, neglect, failure to pay utility bills or

other preventative action that could have been taken by

the tenant.

Section 3. This act shall take effect in one year.

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