The city of Alexandria is opposing Kentucky House Bill 173, which would prohibit them from enforcing a registry of landlords or residential rental properties.
HB 173 prohibits any local government from adopting or enforcing a registry of landlords or residential rental properties for any purpose, including safety assessments of rental units and requiring landlords to conduct lead hazard reports of rental units.
The Alexandria City Council unanimously passed the resolution opposing HB 173 at its Feb. 20 meeting.
The bill was introduced to the Committee on Committees on Jan. 9 and to the House Local Government Committee on Feb. 4 but has not progressed since then.
“It may not go anywhere, but I think it’s important for everyone to be on record that we don’t want them tampering with the safety of our citizens,” Alexandria Attorney Mike Duncan said.
Duncan said Alexandria Council Member Stacey Graus was sponsoring the city’s resolution.
“I don’t understand what the general assembly is doing, and I don’t understand why they would be doing it,” Graus said. “I don’t know why they would take the autonomy that we have away from us to take care of our citizens in our communities.”
Graus said Alexandria has a problem with institutional investors, who he said are not local and absentee landlords purchasing homes in the city’s subdivisions.
“They’re getting the property if it goes on the market, and the way they’re getting it is they’re paying cash, they’re waiving contingencies, they’re waiving any kind of inspection, and regardless of if there’s something wrong, they’re putting people in it,” Graus said.
Graus said he didn’t trust that the institutional investors were going into the homes, thoroughly inspecting and ensuring everything worked properly. He also said they prevent individuals who live in the city or want to live there from purchasing homes because they can’t be outbid.
“They’re also putting people in to rent these properties without ensuring, at times, that these are safe properties to rent, and we need to be able to regulate that,” he said.
Graus said if Alexandria has a 40-unit subdivision and an institutional investor buys five homes and overpays, the homes around them will eventually rise in value. However, if they purchase 10 and stop caring for the properties, the values of the homes around them will decrease.
“I appreciate the fact that some people can’t purchase the property, and they want to live in a community, and some of them probably take very good care of those properties, but others may not,” Graus said. “It would be transitory for them. They don’t own that property. They’re not invested in that property.”
HB 173 has five sponsors, including T.J. Roberts, a Republican from Northern Kentucky who represents part of Boone County.
The other sponsors are Ryan Dotson, a Republican representing parts of Fayette and Clark counties; Josh Calloway, a Republican representing Breckinridge and Hardin counties; Derek Lewis, a Republican representing parts of Laurel, Clay, and Leslie counties, and Richard White, a Republican representing Elliott, Morgan and Rowan counties.
Graus also briefly mentioned an issue with Senate Bill 110, which would prevent any local government from adopting or enforcing ordinances or regulations requiring short-term rentals to obtain a conditional use permit or imposing density-based restrictions on short-term rentals.
SB 110 was introduced to the Senate Committee on Committees on Feb. 6 and the Senate Standing Committee on Economic Development, Tourism, & Labor on Feb. 11.
The bill’s only sponsor is Senator Stephen West, a Republican who covers District 27 Bourbon, Fayette (Part), Fleming, Harrison, Mason, Nicholas, Robertson, and Rowan.
“I don’t think it’s a good use of our funds to pay the members of the house and the members of the senate to take up legislation that is going to be detrimental to the local communities,” Graus said. “Cities and counties. Hopefully, these will die, both the house and senate bill, and we won’t have to worry about it.”
Duncan said that if this type of legislation were passed, it would render many of their current ordinances null and void.
