Respect State Housing Laws Act
Introduced February 6, 2025 · Last action February 6, 2025
Plain English Summary
This bill removes a federal requirement from the CARES Act that requires landlords to provide tenants with advance notice before evicting them for non-payment of rent during the pandemic emergency. The change allows landlords to follow their state's eviction laws without the federal notice requirement.
Who benefits
Landlords and property owners seeking to evict tenants for unpaid rent without providing the federally-mandated advance notice period. Residential rental property managers and real estate investment firms that own rental housing stock.
Who pays / loses
Tenants facing eviction for non-payment of rent, particularly low-income renters and those experiencing temporary financial hardship, who would lose the federal advance notice protection and face faster eviction timelines in states with shorter notice periods.
Funding & Lobbying Interests
Residential real estate and property management industries have a financial interest in reduced tenant protections, as faster eviction procedures reduce vacancy periods and administrative costs. Landlord associations and real estate investment trusts typically lobby for streamlined eviction processes.
Political Impact
Affected Groups
Renters in lower-income brackets who rely on federal eviction protections; tenants facing pandemic-related income loss; landlords and property owners with rental portfolios; states with minimal tenant notice-of-vacate requirements.
Political Subtext
Proponents argue the bill restores state sovereignty by allowing states' housing laws to operate without federal override and reduces landlord burden. Critics contend it eliminates a pandemic-era protection designed to prevent mass evictions during economic crisis and shifts power to landlords in tight rental markets where tenant bargaining power is weak. The CARES Act notice requirement was a temporary emergency measure; removing it reverts to pre-pandemic state law variation, meaning tenants' protections will depend entirely on state law.
Real-World Stakes
If passed, tenants would lose the federal notice-to-vacate requirement and eviction timelines would accelerate based on state law. States with short notice periods (some as low as 3 days in Mississippi and Wyoming for at-will tenancies) would enable faster evictions. Eviction moratoria and notice requirements, including the CARES Act provision, were documented by the Census Household Pulse Survey to have reduced evictions by an estimated 1.55 million during 2020–2021; removal of this requirement would likely increase eviction filings, particularly in economically vulnerable areas.
What's Inside This Bill
Non-obvious provisions not apparent from the headline summary.
Retroactive Application to Pending Cases
The bill does not specify whether the removal of federal notice requirements applies only to future evictions or also to eviction cases already filed or pending under the old federal requirements. This ambiguity could allow courts to reinterpret ongoing cases under the new standard.
AffectsTenants with eviction cases already in process could lose the federal notice protection they relied on, even if notice was not yet provided at the time the bill becomes law.
State Law Variation in Notice Periods
By deferring entirely to state eviction laws, the bill creates significant variation in tenant protections depending on state residence. Some states may have minimal or no notice requirements, while others maintain longer notice periods.
AffectsLow-income and vulnerable tenants in states with weak eviction protections face immediate loss of housing with little warning, while tenants in other states retain stronger protections based purely on geography.
No Transition or Grace Period
The bill appears to take effect immediately upon enactment with no specified transition period or grace period before landlords can begin using expedited eviction procedures under state law.
AffectsTenants currently benefiting from federal notice requirements could face eviction notices under state-law standards without warning or time to respond, creating immediate housing instability.
Removal of Federal Enforcement Mechanism
By eliminating the federal requirement, the bill also removes federal enforcement authority and remedies, leaving enforcement solely to individual state attorneys general or private lawsuits under state law.
AffectsTenants lose access to federal enforcement remedies and must rely on inconsistent state-level enforcement, which may be under-resourced or unavailable in some jurisdictions.
Sponsor
Co-sponsors (13)
RSen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR]RSen. Boozman, John [R-AR]RSen. Blackburn, Marsha [R-TN]RSen. Britt, Katie Boyd [R-AL]RSen. Schmitt, Eric [R-MO]RSen. Kennedy, John [R-LA]RSen. Crapo, Mike [R-ID]RSen. Hagerty, Bill [R-TN]RSen. Curtis, John R. [R-UT]RSen. Cramer, Kevin [R-ND]RSen. Ricketts, Pete [R-NE]RSen. Lee, Mike [R-UT]RSen. McCormick, David [R-PA]
Vote Record
No recorded votes.
Campaign Finance — Primary Sponsor
Top contributing industries
Other$315,227.64
Agriculture$6,260
Technology$4,300
Construction$3,500
Law$3,500
501(c)(4) disclosure: Contributions from 501(c)(4) "dark money" organizations are not required to be publicly disclosed and are not reflected in the figures above. Data sourced from FEC public disclosure filings.
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