STATEMENT TO

[First Reprint]

SENATE, No. 3110

with Senate Floor Amendments

(Proposed by Senator SMITH)

ADOPTED: NOVEMBER 21, 2022

      The amendments revise the notifications that landlords must provide to tenants pursuant to the bill.  The amendments require landlords, prior to lease signing or renewal, to disclose whether the property is located in the FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area or Moderate Risk Flood Hazard Area, and if the landlord has actual knowledge that certain areas of the property have been subjected to flooding.

      The amendments require the Department of Environmental Protection to include information on its website to help landlords and property owners provide the disclosures required by the bill. The bill’s requirement to disclose if the property is in the FEMA Special or Moderate Risk Flood Hazard Area, beyond actual knowledge, do not take effect until after the Department of Environmental Protection has established a look-up tool to facilitate those disclosures.

      The amendments also revise the circumstances under which a tenant suffers a substantial loss or damage to personal property due to flooding that entitles the tenant to terminate the lease and pursue legal remedies.