Albuquerque renters will not receive local protection from excessive fees after the City Council rejected an ordinance Wednesday that would have enforced the state’s Senate Bill 267 in limbo.
The 5-4 vote leaves the law, which caps application fees at $50 and limits late fees to 5% of rent, unenforced at the local level. Since the attorney general’s office referred complaints back to the city for enforcement, code enforcement cannot act without a local ordinance, leaving nearly half of Albuquerque households with rights on paper but no clear way to enforce them.
The defeated measure, sponsored by District 6 City Councilor Nichole Rogers, would have banned “pay-to-pay” charges by requiring landlords to offer at least one fee-free payment option. Violators would have faced fines up to $500…