A New Hampshire bill that would have prohibited housing discrimination against people who have pets is being scaled back at the lead sponsor’s request.
The legislation, in its original form, would have prevented landlords from imposing no pet policies on rental units statewide.
Rep. Ellen Read, a Democrat from Newmarket, says concerns over animals damaging rental properties are exaggerated, and that pet owners can struggle to find housing options.
“If your animal is not causing damage, and is not hurting anybody else, why shouldn’t you be able to have your animal?” said Read.
But during a House committee hearing on Thursday, landlords lined up to oppose the bill, sharing horror stories of runaway snakes, smelly turtles, destructive dogs, and cat pee.
Among the concerns raised is that HB 1391 doesn’t distinguish the number of pets, opening the door to potential pet hoarding situations.
“There was no limit to the number of pets, so someone with 15 cats would have to be accepted,” Nick Norman with the N.H. Apartment Association told the House Judiciary Committee.
Another concern raised is that the wording of the bill effectively turned pet owners into a protected class, on par with protections aimed at ending housing discrimination based on race or religion.
“Age, race, color, creed, etcetera, are characteristics. They deserve legal protection because they are something which we don’t have any control. But pet ownership is not,” Charlie Griffin, a landlord from Portsmouth, told the committee..
While Rep. Read continues to support the original version of the bill, she released an amendment Thursday altering the legislation into a request to study the issue of housing discrimination involving pets.
“I knew I was going to get pushback on it,” said Read. “I didn’t really expect it to be successful out the gate, but I wanted us to start talking about what tenants’ rights are when it comes to having parts of their family with them.”
