Pressley Warns: Without Tenant Empowerment, Renters Can Be Stuck In ‘Life-Threatening’ Conditions

3 months ago

On Thursday, Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) delivered remarks on the House Floor regarding tenant empowerment.

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Transcript

00:00Without objection, the gentlewoman from Massachusetts is recognized for one

00:03minute. Madam Speaker, I rise as Vice Chair of the Renter's Caucus to

00:09introduce the Tenant Empowerment Act alongside Ranking Member Maxine Waters

00:13and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib. For decades, tenants across the country,

00:18including in my district, the MA 7th, have organized and mobilized to demand safe,

00:23stable, and affordable housing conditions. No hot water or heat during the winter,

00:28life-threatening black mold creeping up the walls, leaky roofs that let in rain

00:33and snow. These are the conditions that tenants are forced to endure with little

00:37to no recourse. How devastating and demoralizing. Our bill, the Tenant

00:42Empowerment Act, would change that. It would enable tenants to withhold paying

00:47rent if their home fails to meet quality housing standards, allow tenants to be

00:51present during building inspections, and extend tenants' rights to organize in

00:55federally assisted housing. This bill will empower renters with the tools they

01:01need to ensure that safe, stable, and affordable housing is not only a right

01:04but a reality for every person in America. As the daughter of a tenants

01:10rights organizer, I'm proud to put forward this necessary policy. Everyone

01:14deserves to turn the key and to have a place that feels safe, a place of

01:19belonging and refuge, and on behalf of more than 44 million families living in

01:24rental units, Congress must take action.

01:26Gentlewoman yields. Under the speaker's announced policy of January 9th, 2023, the

01:33gentleman from Texas, Mr. Green...

Pressley Warns: Without Tenant Empowerment, Renters Can Be Stuck In ‘Life-Threatening’ Conditions

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