Monthly Archives: July 2017

2 posts

Seattle Limits Landlords from Screening for Criminal History

Update: This proposal was passed into law.  A proposed Seattle ordinance would limit landlords’ use of criminal history, including sex offender registration.[1] Under the proposal, among other requirements and prohibitions: landlords could not use arrest records for any purpose, since an arrest is not proof of guilt; landlords could not use criminal convictions more than two years old without a “legitimate business reason”; landlords could not use an adult’s status as a registered sex offender without a “legitimate business reason”; landlords could not use a juvenile’s status as a registered sex offender for any reason.

Seattle Landlords Must Provide Voter Registration

A new ordinance requires Seattle landlords to provide voter registration to new tenants. Seattle landlords are already required to provide an informational packet on landlord-tenant law to each new prospective renter (not only those who sign a rental agreement), at each renewal of a tenancy, and annually to all month-to-month tenants. The landlord-tenant law pamphlet can be given electronically only to existing tenants. Voter registration will be added to the landlord-tenant law packet, which is currently fifteen pages.  Washington state law also requires a mold disclosure pamphlet. The voter registration requirement is the latest in a series of new burdens […]