House Defeats No-Cause Moratorium Amendment but Passes H 829 With Study and Stability Measures

The Vermont House debated H 829, an act to create upstream eviction protections and enhance housing stability, taking multiple amendments on charter changes, no-cause evictions, and a study process before passing the bill.

Representative Small of Winooski offered an amendment to eradicate no-cause evictions, arguing that "Evictions are devastating, destabilizing events" and that municipalities which passed charter protections deserve statewide remedies. The general and housing committee had voted the amendment down, and several members on the floor argued that imposing a statewide moratorium without extensive vetting could produce unintended consequences for property owners and markets. The House declined to adopt the amendment by division: those voting yes 13, those voting no 119.

Later, an amendment from members including representatives from Burlington proposed creating an eviction study committee to examine causes of eviction, data collection, and potential statutory models. The proposed committee would meet up to 12 times, include legislators and stakeholder representatives (Vermont Legal Aid, Vermont Landlords Association, Community Action Partnership, judiciary), and produce findings and possible legislation by December 15. Committees on general and housing and appropriations reported favorably on this study amendment, which the House adopted.

After further floor debate and explanations of vote, the House took a roll-call on final passage of H 829. The clerk announced the result: those voting yes 97, those voting no 42. The ayes have it and the bill passed as amended.

The floor debate repeatedly balanced concerns about protecting tenants from arbitrary displacement with caution about imposing statewide rules that might not fit all communities. "This amendment would impose a policy with very little vetting... on the entire state that probably isn't the right policy today," a committee chair said on the floor.