# 119-s-2148: End Junk Fees for Renters Act

119-s-2148, End Junk Fees for Renters Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR] (D-OR); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2025-12-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2148
- As of: 2025-12-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-2148
- Congress: 119
- Title: End Junk Fees for Renters Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-06-24
- Sponsor: Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR] (D-OR)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Housing and Community Development
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2025-12-21

## Summary

**Limits junk fees for renters.** This bill would ban common rental add-on charges and force clearer fee and rent disclosures while directing agencies to define and restrict so-called "junk fees" in housing.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] (I-VT), 2025-06-24T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Caps landlord late rent fees: benefit, medium. If enacted, owners of covered dwelling units could only charge a late fee that is less than 3% of monthly rent. A late fee could be charged only after rent is more than 15 days late. These fee rules must be disclosed in new leases for covered units.
- CFPB and FTC define junk fees: benefit, medium. If enacted, the CFPB and FTC would have 180 days to issue a rule defining 'junk fee' for rental housing. The rule must also find that reporting unpaid junk fees to consumer credit agencies is an unfair debt‑collection practice.
- Ban rental application and screening fees: benefit, low. If enacted, owners of covered dwelling units would be barred from charging any fee when you apply to rent. This includes fees for criminal history checks, tenant screening, and consumer reports.
- Require tenant disclosures before leases: benefit, low. If enacted, owners of covered dwelling units would have to give prospective tenants, before signing a lease: the total monthly cost with fees; a practicable summary of past tenant litigation; any ongoing pest or maintenance issues; and rent increases for each of the last 10 years.
- Which units and agencies are covered: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would define 'covered dwelling units' to include HUD‑assisted units and units on properties with certain federally backed single‑family or multifamily loans. It would also assign enforcement to HUD, VA, USDA, or the Federal Housing Finance Agency depending on the loan type.

## Related bills

- 119-s-891: Bipartisan Health Care Act
- 119-s-5071: Children's Safe Welcome Act of 2026
- 119-s-2838: Protecting Our Democracy Act
- 119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act
- 119-s-5283: Momnibus Act
- 119-s-1507: Agriculture Resilience Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-s-2148 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2148)

## Related
- [119-s-891: Bipartisan Health Care Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-891)
- [119-s-5071: Children's Safe Welcome Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5071)
- [119-s-2838: Protecting Our Democracy Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2838)
- [119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2819)
- [119-s-5283: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5283)
- [119-s-1507: Agriculture Resilience Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1507)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2148 (as of 2025-12-21).