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Gov. Chris Sununu vetoed House Bill 1247, which would have required landlords to offer tenants the option of paying delinquent rent over a six-month period.
The bill was introduced in the state House of Representatives in March but didn’t pass either the House or Senate until their last-minute sessions earlier this month.
“Denying property owners the opportunity to pay their bills is a recipe for them removing these rental units from the market, placing them up for sale in our robust real estate market, and further exacerbating the shortage of rental units that already exists across New Hampshire,” Sununu wrote. “Not only would this reduce the housing supply, but it would also, in turn, drive up the cost of rent statewide. This would further undermine opportunities for workforce housing, particularly for low income individuals, the very same group that proponents of this legislation suggest they are trying to help.”
In his veto message, Sununu cited the protections he had already granted renters as part of his emergency executive orders responding to the pandemic.
Until New Hampshire’s coronavirus state of emergency ends, landlords must give tenants 30 days’ notice of evictions filed for non-payment of rent. In addition, Sununu allocated $35 million in federal coronavirus relief money to the New Hampshire Housing Relief Program’s emergency rent relief fund.
The veto comes as eviction data released by the state court system shows that the number of landlord-tenant writ cases of all types, including non-payment of rent, has begun to rise to pre-pandemic levels in Manchester following the resumption of eviction filings statewide at the start of the month.
According to the most recent data available at the time of publication, Manchester had seen 36 evictions in the first two weeks of July. Evictions of tenants who pay for housing with Section 8 vouchers cannot be evicted until after July 25 with a 30-day notice to quit. Those who live in properties with mortgages backed by the Federal Housing Administration, Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac are not allowed to resume until Aug. 31, according to the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development.
