St. Paul approves ‘right to repair’ ordinance
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St. Paul voters on Tuesday approved a landmark right-to-repair ordinance that will allow renters to deduct repair costs from their rent if landlords do not respond to the issue within 14 days.
The cost limit for repair reimbursements is $500 or one half of the tenant’s monthly rent, whichever is greater. Renters will be allowed to execute simple repairs themselves, but more difficult or technical work will have to be performed by licensed professionals.
The measure, initiated by the group Safe Homes St. Paul, passed easily — nearly 80 percent support with 82 precincts reporting.
The measure will affect the nearly half of the city’s residents who rent their homes, according to the most recent U.S. Census survey.
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St. Paul tenants will be able to give their landlords a written notice detailing the repair needed and their intention to expense its cost if no action is taken. Landlords will then have 14 days to schedule or perform the repair.
More than half of the city’s residential housing units are close to or over 100 years old, according to Safe Homes Saint Paul, which backed the measure.
The initiative encountered opposition from business groups including the St Paul Area Chamber, and from the St. Paul City Council, which voted in August to keep the measure off the ballot even though Safe Homes St. Paul had gathered enough signatures for it.
Whether the right to repair question would be up for debate in the election went all the way to the Minnesota Supreme Court, which allowed it to stay on the ballot. But the ordinance’s fate wasn’t decided until Monday, when the Minnesota Court of Appeals upheld the state Supreme Court ruling.
Duluth was the first city in Minnesota to pass a similar measure last November.
Reporter Daniel Graham contributed to this report.
