State lawmakers are weighing whether to incentivize dog– and cat-friendly landlords through a bill that would potentially net property owners $7,500 a year in tax credits.
House Bill 277, sponsored by Reps. Sharon Ray (R-Wadsworth) and Juanita Brent (D-Cleveland), would offer a $750 tax credit for each of a landlord’s units that welcome “companion animals” – or, as defined in HB 277, dogs and cats. Landlords could claim a maximum of 10 units per calendar year.
To qualify for the proposed credit, however, property owners couldn’t charge renters nonrefundable fees or additional rent based solely on the presence of a pet. They would also have to allow dogs and cats of all breeds and sizes, although they could turn away “vicious or dangerous” ones, according to the bill.
Just over two-thirds of Ohioans live in homes they own, according to U.S. Census Bureau data, but Brent said the state is seeing more renters.
“The last thing you want to do is move somewhere where your pet can’t go with you,” Brent said during earlier testimony.
The bill doesn’t require landlords to accommodate pet-owning tenants, but it encourages them to do so. Owners with fewer properties would be more likely to take advantage of the proposed credits, she said, because of the 10-unit maximum.
The Cleveland Animal Protective League came up with the idea, Ray said. Cleveland APL President Shannon Harvey was one of several supporters who testified on the bill during its second hearing on Oct. 31.
Harvey stressed her concern about the number of people who have left pets in shelters because their current or prospective landlords wouldn’t allow them – or because they simply couldn’t find affordable housing that would accept their animals.
“This bill will attract landlords, maybe more of the smaller landlords, who would be that transitional housing or would be that rental properties that people in that situation might be in,” Harvey said.
But Rep. Angela King (R-Celina) wasn’t sold on the $750 amount, among other concerns with the proposal.
“I think it’s well-intentioned,” King said. “$750 doesn’t go very far. For me as a landlord, it wouldn’t entice me.”
A fiscal analysis by the Ohio Legislative Service Commission found that the credits would cost roughly between $160 million and $255 million annually.
