The Committee on Local Government voted to advance House Bill 2099 on a motion to pass the bill out favorably as amended.

House Bill 2099 would carve an exception into current law that prohibits cities and counties from conducting interior inspections of residential rental property. As amended in committee, the exception would apply only to the City of Topeka, would apply to properties whose owners receive direct federal rental assistance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and the committee added a five‑year sunset to the provision so the policy can be reassessed.

The bill’s reviser described the proposal to the committee: “House Bill 2,099 is the bill that amends a statute. The statute currently prohibits city or counties from conducting inspections on the interior of rental property of residential property. The bill would make an exception that would allow a city or county to do periodic property inspections of the interior of residential housing property in cases where the owner of the property is receiving the governmental rental subsidies.” The reviser also summarized procedural safeguards the bill would require, saying, “The City or County must provide reasonable notice prior to the inspection. They may require the landlord to perform random inspections if there's been a code violation complaint. If the tenant objects to an inspection, then the city of county would be required to go get a search warrant in order to conduct the inspection.”

Committee members debated whether it was appropriate for the state to single out one city. “I always get concerned when we start having individual cities or counties or entities referenced in state statute rather than maybe something that applies to everybody,” Representative Pisney said during discussion of an amendment narrowing the bill to Topeka. In response, other members said the narrower approach matched the bill sponsor’s intent and avoided imposing a uniform requirement on all municipalities. One member suggested allowing cities to opt in rather than imposing a new statewide duty.

Several amendments were adopted before the final passage. The committee first adopted a “balloon” amendment that limited the inspection exception to the City of Topeka and defined “direct public financial assistance” as governmental payments that subsidize tenant rent. Later, a separate amendment proposed by a committee member narrowed that definition further to refer specifically to direct HUD assistance; the reviser advised the committee that the two amendments could be coordinated so the definition would read as HUD‑provided direct public financial assistance in the adopted language. The committee then adopted an amendment inserting a five‑year sunset so the provision would expire unless renewed.

Committee members also pressed staff on whether the HUD limitation would affect local governments’ existing contractual inspection authority. The reviser answered that local inspection requirements that are conditions of receipt of local government subsidies are contractual matters between the city and the property owner and that limiting the statutory exception to HUD assistance would not prevent cities from conditioning local subsidies on inspections.

After adopting the amendments, a member moved that the committee “pass the bill out favorably as amended.” The chair called the voice vote; the motion carried and the bill will be sent on for further consideration.

Ending: The committee moved on after the passage and scheduled further work on other bills and routine business.