From the office of DC Councilmember Charles Allen, Ward 6:
“The DC Council voted unanimously to initially approve Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen’s Fair Housing Practices Amendment Act of 2026, which bans property owners and managers of multifamily buildings from separately charging tenants additional monthly fees for the utility costs associated with the building’s common areas and vacant units. In recent years, these fees have varied greatly from month to month and been more frequently used to tack on hundreds of dollars in additional costs beyond the rent amount in a lease agreement.
“The rent is the rent – or at least it should be. When you sign a lease, it’s very reasonable to expect the monthly rent to cover the costs of running and maintaining the building,” said Councilmember Allen, who introduced the bill in October 2024 after hearing from many residents fed up with rising fees. “There’s no reason why a building needs to add hundreds of dollars in surprise fees on top of what a tenant pays in rent just because the hallway or lobby in their building has lights, heating, and cooling.”
Common area utility fees have created plenty of frustration and surprise for residents, even prompting DC’s Attorney General Brian Schwalb to issue an alert on the topic.
The bill will have a second and final vote at the Council’s next Legislative Meeting. It would then go into effect on Jan. 1, 2027.”