Housing FIRST Act

New renter protections in screening

If enacted, this bill would add "tenant screening" as an official reason consumer reports can be run for housing. It would bar many law-enforcement items from tenant screening reports, including arrest records, juvenile convictions (including juveniles tried as adults), non-criminal citations, diversion or similar program outcomes, convictions that were completed or are on probation or parole, fee-related incarceration items, and records that were expunged, sealed, vacated, pardoned, or granted clemency. The bill would also remove the old exception that let conviction records appear in consumer reports, making convictions less likely to show up in reports landlords, employers, or lenders use. If a landlord or other user denies housing based wholly or partly on a tenant-screening report, the user would have to give the consumer a notice within 3 days and explain the specific reasons and the report items that led to the decision. Consumer reporting agencies would also be able to list the entities that provided information to them when they disclose sources.