SCR5

WHEREAS, rent for residential property can rise drastically when the economy is good and housing is in short supply; and

WHEREAS, rent control refers to the regulation of rent to prevent unreasonable or excessive increases; and

WHEREAS, in the United States, the federal government imposed rent control during World War II, and continued the practice in several cities after the war because of housing shortages; and

WHEREAS, states and municipalities later assumed jurisdiction over rent control and the practice has since ended in most locations; and

WHEREAS, rent control proponents claim that housing is an inalienable human right equal to landlords' rights and that rent control is necessary to prevent landlords from imposing rent increases that force the elderly and poor to move; and

WHEREAS, rent control proponents also claim that maintaining a supply of affordable housing is essential to sustaining job growth and communities that are inclusive of seniors and people of all income levels; and

WHEREAS, homeowners who support rent control stress the neighborhood instability caused by rent increases and the negative effect on schools, youth groups, and community organizations when tenants frequently move; and

WHEREAS, rent control opponents claim that rent control creates housing shortages, resulting in an overall decrease in the quality of housing stock in an area, and that the benefits of rent control accrue disproportionately to the wealthy and well-connected; and

WHEREAS, rent control opponents also claim that the goal of making housing available and affordable to the poor can be accomplished by the same free market that created the housing units in the first place, or by government construction or subsidy of affordable housing projects; and

WHEREAS, rent control opponents also claim that the practice violates landlords' property rights because it limits the landlords' ability to sell their rent controlled properties and essentially puts a landlord's property to work for the state without recourse; and

WHEREAS, regulation of real property is a general occurrence in modern societies; and

WHEREAS, landlords' actively assert to legislatures that the government has taken their property without compensation, even though courts have generally found that unconstitutional takings have not occurred; and

WHEREAS, while the political debate over rent control is far-reaching, the purpose and provisions of rent control laws are intended to be limited in scope, and the frequency and degree of rent increases are usually limited by the rate of inflation; and

WHEREAS, under rent control, landlords may pass the cost of capital improvements to tenants, and tenants may claim that decreased services or the lack of necessary repairs offset additional increases or justify a rent reduction; now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2007, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Legislative Reference Bureau is requested to study the legality and effectiveness of rent control in jurisdictions where rent control has been established; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau consider the feasibility and potential effectiveness of enacting and implementing rent control measures in Hawaii; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Legislative Reference Bureau report its findings to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the 2008 regular session; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the Director of the Legislative Reference Bureau, the interim Director of the Hawaii Public Housing Authority, and the Director of the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation.

	OFFERED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Rent Control; Legislative Reference Bureau Study

THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	5
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007
STATE OF HAWAII