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MEDIA ADVISORY Contact: Farah Fosse, Affordable Housing Program Director TENANTS TO DEMAND EQUAL ACCESS TO LANDLORD-TENANT COURT AT DC CITY COUNCIL HEARING WASHINGTON – On November 30th, the DC Council Committee on Housing and Workforce Development will hear testimony on Bill 18-0104 – the Tenant Access to Justice Reform Act of 2009 – that would give tenants the right to sue landlords over housing condition complaints in Landlord-Tenant Court. Tenants will give testimony about their experiences with poor housing conditions and in Landlord-Tenant Court. Tenants and advocates will demand that tenants have the same speedy, inexpensive access to enforce their rental lease that landlords currently have. Tenants have the right to live in decent and sanitary housing in the District. Unfortunately, DC lacks a meaningful process to allow tenants to enforce this right. Currently, a landlord can sue a tenant in Landlord-Tenant Court to enforce the lease, but tenants can’t sue a landlord in this court. As a result, when a landlord fails to make repairs, the tenants’ only course of action often is to withhold rent and hope they are taken to court on eviction charges. WHAT: DC Council Committee on Housing and Workforce Development will hear testimony about Bill 18-0104 -- the Tenant Access to Justice Reform Act of 2009 WHERE: DC Council, Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Room 500 WHEN: Monday, November 30th, 11 AM WHO: Tenants with poor housing conditions -----30----- LEDC’s mission is to improve the wealth-building capacity of low- and moderate-income Latinos and other underserved communities in the Washington area. For more information, visit www.ledcmetro.org.
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Tenants Testify at DC Council Hearing