Revision: Dec. 2, 2019, 9:58 a.m.
HB 1120 - AS INTRODUCED
2020 SESSION
20-2075
05/06
HOUSE BILL 1120
AN ACT requiring periodic water tests of rental property.
SPONSORS: Rep. W. Thomas, Hills. 21; Rep. DesMarais, Carr. 6; Rep. Chase, Straf. 18; Rep. Frost, Straf. 16; Rep. Coursin, Rock. 1; Rep. Stack, Hills. 21; Rep. Eisner, Rock. 6; Rep. DiLorenzo, Rock. 17
COMMITTEE: Judiciary
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ANALYSIS
This bill requires the landlord to make certain water tests for residential property available to the tenant. The bill also requires the landlord to install a water treatment system if the property has a well and the water does not meet water quality standards established by the department of environmental services.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
20-2075
05/06
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty
AN ACT requiring periodic water tests of rental property.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Section; Landlord Tenant; Water Testing and Remediation Requirements. Amend RSA 540-A by inserting after section 3-a the following new section:
540-A:3-b Water Testing and Remediation Requirements. The landlord of residential property shall provide a tenant or prospective tenant with a laboratory report from an accredited laboratory that demonstrates that the water supply for the property meets or exceeds current water quality standards in rules adopted by the department of environmental services. The results of the water test shall be available to the parties at the time the lease is signed and shall be updated by the landlord annually thereafter, for the duration of the lease.
I. If the property uses a public water supply, providing the tenant with a copy of, or access to, the annual water quality report for the municipality shall meet the requirements of this section.
II. If the property has a private well, the landlord shall obtain an annual water test from an accredited laboratory that includes the level of arsenic, radon, and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs). If the well water does not meet the water quality standards established by the department of environmental services, the landlord shall be responsible for installing a water treatment system which filters contaminants to levels that meet such standards.
2 Effective Date. This act shall take effect January 1, 2021.