Houston is moving to treat air conditioning as a basic rental standard rather than an optional amenity in a city where summer heat can quickly become dangerous.
A newly proposed ordinance would eliminate a loophole that lets some landlords provide screened windows instead of functioning air conditioning in rental spaces that are supposed to be habitable.
What’s happening?
On Monday, Houston City Council Member Alejandra Salinas rolled out a “Right to Air Conditioning” ordinance that, as Click2Houston reported, would obligate rental properties to provide and maintain operable air conditioning.
Salinas’ office said 2023 U.S. Census data shows that thousands of Houston renters still live without air conditioning, even though most landlords already provide it. The ordinance would also remove language in Houston’s Building Standards Code that currently allows landlords to slip through the cracks and choose not to provide AC if window screens are installed…