AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 66-28-107, relative to landlord registration.
Summary
HB0648 amends Tennessee’s landlord registration law in Tennessee Code Annotated § 66-28-107. The bill creates a streamlined filing option for larger rental properties: if a property has five or more dwelling units and the required registration information is identical for each unit, the landlord may submit one registration form for the entire property rather than separate forms for each unit. This is intended to reduce administrative duplication for multi-unit properties.
The bill also revises the local-government authorization framework for landlord registration ordinances. It clarifies that the section applies only to municipal, metropolitan, or county governments that adopt it by ordinance or resolution, and that those local enactments must identify which dwelling units must register and set the fee, subject to the statutory cap. In addition, local governments already subject to the section as of June 30, 2025, are exempt from having to pass a new ordinance or resolution to remain covered.
Impact
HB0648 would modify the landlord registration process for multi-unit residential properties and adjust how local governments implement landlord registration requirements. It affects Tennessee Code Annotated § 66-28-107 by allowing consolidated registration for qualifying properties and by clarifying local authority to require registration and collect fees. Landlords of larger properties may face less paperwork, while municipalities, metropolitan governments, and counties that use landlord registration ordinances would operate under the updated procedural rules.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and the absence of recorded committee debate or votes in the provided materials, the overall sentiment appears neutral and administrative rather than controversial. The measure seems aimed at simplifying compliance for landlords while preserving local governments’ ability to require registration where authorized. No formal opposition, support, or amendment activity is reflected in the supplied context.
Contention
The main policy tension in HB0648 is between reducing administrative burden for landlords and preserving local regulatory control over rental property registration. Landlords of five-or-more-unit properties may favor the one-form option as a paperwork reduction, while local governments may be attentive to maintaining fee authority and registration coverage. Another possible point of concern is the clarification that existing local governments subject to the section by June 30, 2025, need not reenact ordinances, which may matter for how the law is implemented but does not appear to have generated documented dispute in the provided record.