Sec. 3011. Tenant bill of rights for privatized military housing
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Subchapter IV of chapter 169 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section: The Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of each military department, shall develop a document known as the Tenant Bill of Rights for tenants of housing units under this subchapter. At a minimum, the document developed under paragraph
(1)shall contain the right of each tenant as follows: To reside in a home and community that meets health and environmental standards established by the Secretary of Defense. To reside in a home that has working fixtures, appliances, and utilities and reside in a community with well-maintained common areas and amenity spaces. To report inadequate housing standards or deficits in habitability to the landlord, chain of command, and housing management office without fear of reprisal. With respect to the housing management office of the installation of the Department at which the housing unit is located— to use such office as an advocate relating to such housing unit; and to receive advice and support from such office relating to such housing unit. To receive property management services provided by a landlord that meet or exceed industry standards and that are performed by professionally trained, responsive, and courteous customer service and maintenance staff. To have multiple, convenient methods to communicate directly with the landlord and maintenance staff, and to receive honest, straightforward, and responsive communications at all times. With respect to repairs— to prompt and professional repairs; to be informed of the required time frame for those repairs when a maintenance request is submitted; and to prompt relocation into suitable lodging or other housing at no cost to the tenant until the repairs are completed or relocation to an alternative residence on the installation or within the surrounding local community at no cost to the tenant. To enter into a dispute resolution process under section 2891 of this title concerning disputes over repairs, damage claims, and rental payments to be resolved by a neutral decision maker, with any decision in favor of the tenant to include a reduction in rent owed to the landlord to be paid or credited to the tenant. To withhold basic allowance for housing (including for any dependents of the tenant in the tenant’s household) under section 403 of title 37, or any pay of the tenant subject to allotment described in section 2882(c) of this title, if the tenant is engaged in a dispute under subparagraph
(H)until a decision in the matter is made. To be fully briefed by the landlord on all rights and responsibilities associated with tenancy prior to signing a lease and receive a 30-day followup to review these responsibilities. To have sufficient time and opportunity to prepare and be present for move-in and move-out inspections, including an opportunity to obtain necessary paperwork. To have reasonable, advance notice of any entrance by a landlord into the housing unit, except in the case of an emergency. To have clearly defined rental terms in the lease agreement. To not pay non-refundable fees or have application of rent credits arbitrarily held. To have universal procedures for housing under this subchapter that are the same for all installations of the Department. To file claims against a landlord. The document developed under paragraph
(1)shall contain the responsibilities of each tenant as follows: To report maintenance or quality of life issues to the landlord in a timely manner. To maintain standard upkeep of the housing unit as recommended by the housing management office. The Secretary shall ensure that the Tenant Bill of Rights under this section is attached to each lease agreement for housing under this subchapter. Beginning in fiscal year 2021, and biennially thereafter, the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of each military department, shall submit to the congressional defense committees, as part of the annual budget submission of the President for that year under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, the Tenant Bill of Rights under this section. Upon submitting the Tenant Bill of Rights to the congressional defense committees under paragraph (1), the Secretary of Defense shall publish the Tenant Bill of Rights on a publicly available Internet website of the Department of Defense. . The table of sections at the beginning of such subchapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 2886 the following new item: 2887. Tenant Bill of Rights. . Not later than February 1, 2020, the Secretary of each military department shall submit to the congressional defense committees a plan for the implementation by that military department of section 2887 of title 10, United States Code, as added by subsection (a).