PRINTER'S NO. 1024
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE BILL
No.
859
Session of
2023
INTRODUCED BY SCHWANK, COSTA, DILLON, KEARNEY, HAYWOOD,
BREWSTER, CAPPELLETTI AND KANE, JULY 27, 2023
REFERRED TO URBAN AFFAIRS AND HOUSING, JULY 27, 2023
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 preliminary provisions, providing for
reusable tenant screening report.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. The act of April 6, 1951 (P.L.69, No.20), known
as The Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951, is amended by adding a
section to read:
Section 106. Reusable Tenant Screening Report.--(a) A
landlord may elect to accept a reusable tenant screening report
in offering real property for lease. A landlord is not required
to accept a reusable tenant screening report.
(b) A landlord may require an applicant to state that there
has not been a material change to the information in the
reusable tenant screening report.
(c) If an applicant provides a reusable tenant screening
report to a landlord that accepts reusable tenant screening
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reports, the landlord shall not charge the applicant either of
the following:
(1) A fee for the landlord to access the report.
(2) An application screening fee.
(d) A reusable tenant screening report shall include all of
the following information regarding an applicant:
(1) Name.
(2) Contact information.
(3) Verification of employment.
(4) Last known address.
(5) Results of an eviction history check in a manner and for
a period of time consistent with applicable law related to the
consideration of eviction history in housing. The eviction
history check shall include whether the eviction was appealed by
the tenant for any of the following circumstances:
(i) Major health issue, illness or disability of the tenant.
(ii) Loss of job by the tenant.
(iii) Tenant was a victim of domestic violence.
(iv) Death of tenant's spouse.
(v) Gentrification of tenant's prior rental.
(vi) Major habitability issues of tenant's prior rental.
(e) A reusable tenant screening report shall prominently
state the date through which the information contained in the
report is current.
(f) As used in this section, the following words and phrases
shall have the meanings given to them in this subsection unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Applicant" means a person that:
(1) makes a request to a landlord or an agent of the
landlord to lease real property; or
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(2) agrees to act as a guarantor or cosignor on a lease
agreement.
"Application screening fee" means a nonrefundable payment of
money charged by a landlord or an agent of the landlord to an
applicant to purchase a consumer credit report and to validate,
review or otherwise process an application for the rent or lease
of residential rental property.
"Consumer report" has the same meaning as defined under 15
U.S.C. ยง 1681a (relating to definitions; rules of construction).
"Consumer reporting agency" means a person that, for monetary
fees, dues or on a cooperative nonprofit basis, regularly
engages in whole or in part in the practice of assembling or
evaluating consumer credit information or other information on
consumers for the purpose of furnishing consumer reports to
third parties and that uses any means or facility of interstate
commerce for the purpose of preparing or furnishing consumer
reports.
"Reusable tenant screening report" means a consumer report
that meets all of the following criteria:
(1) was prepared within the previous thirty days by a
consumer reporting agency at the request and expense of an
applicant;
(2) is made directly available to a landlord for use in the
lease application process or is provided through a third-party
website that regularly engages in the business of providing a
reusable tenant screening report and complies with all Federal
and State laws pertaining to the use and disclosure of
information contained in a consumer report by a consumer
reporting agency; and
(3) is available to the landlord at no cost to access or
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use.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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