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The Landlord Retaliation Act also bans landlords from
terminating leases, increasing rent, decreasing services or
threatening lawsuits in instances of such disputes, as well as
bars them from refusing to renew a lease after a tenant comes
forward with such a complaint or seeks assistance from an
elected official related to one.
Metropolitan Tenants Organization Executive Director John
Bartlett stands in full support of the changes, adding he hopes
the governor’s actions will start to even the playing field
between the two sides.
“It is really needed because all too often if tenants complain
about repairs, landlords get upset,” Bartlett told The Center
Square. “They kind of blame the tenant, even though it's just
like regular maintenance often times and then they threaten them
with eviction. What it means is that a lot of people won't
report problems and that's really not good for anybody.”
As chief sponsor of the bill, state Sen. Karina Villa, D-West
Chicago, raised many of the same concerns in advancing the
measure. Bartlett added he is hoping the legislation will prove
to be just the start in reforming the industry as a whole.
“I think that there needs to be more,” he said. “I think
realtors like to be able to intimidate people a bit; they like
to be able to threaten people with eviction if they complain too
much. I think really the way to protect tenants from retaliation
is to pass a just cause eviction ordinance that would … require
landlords to actually state a reason why they're evicting the
tenant. In the long run, what we need is a just cause eviction
ordinance.”
While the measure passed both chambers in Springfield by a
nearly 2-1 margin, not everyone was happy to see it become law
of the land. Illinois Rental Property Owners Association
Director of Legislative Affairs Paul Arena warned ultimately it
could prove to hurt the people it portends to want to help most
by leading to fewer landlords entering the market, sparking less
competition and higher rents in a tighter market.
“Housing providers are presumed guilty of retaliation if they
raise rent, do not renew a lease, or even change terms one year
after a tenant requests a repair,” Arena added in a statement.
“This forces housing providers to fight expensive legal battles
to prove their innocence.”
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