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SB 251 – JUNK FEE BILL TEMPLATE

Georgia legislators have quietly revived dozens of stalled bills and sent them back to committee. One we’re watching is SB 251.

SB 251 would crack down on hidden rental fees that add hundreds of dollars a month to rent across Georgia, especially in corporate-owned buildings.

It would also require transparency, so renters know the real cost of rent before applying or signing, and ban landlords from charging for services they don’t provide.

In the middle of a housing affordability crisis, hidden fees create instability and push families closer to the edge. Corporate landlords have made millions off this imbalance.

📣 SB 251 is back in committee right now. Write to the Senate committee and tell them to support it using the template below.

Below is a script voicing support for the Junk Fee bill, followed by all the sitting members of the Senate Economic Development & Tourism Committee’s emails listed. Email the legislators using the template provided, beginning the email to the chair (Drew Echols) and then BCC the rest (as to keep it private).

Feel free to edit and/or add anything relevant to your personal situation.

::: TEMPLATE :::

Hello Senator,

I’m a renter in Georgia and I proudly support SB 251, which would eliminate hidden fees in rental housing in Georgia. Hidden fees add hundreds of dollars per month in rent for everyday Georgians. These fees are often concealed, random, and arbitrary and hinder renters’ ability to access stable and affordable housing. Just recently, a corporate landlord in Georgia was found to be charging renters millions of dollars in hidden and deceptive fees. Georgia is facing a housing affordability crisis, and hidden fees exacerbate the crisis, by creating unnecessary housing instability for renters.

Every renter should know the true costs of finding and staying in their home, and any fees charged to renters should be fair and transparent. Renters should know before they sign the lease or pay an application fee, what the actual monthly rent price is including all fees, so that renters can make an informed decision on if this is the best financial decision for them. For people with extremely low incomes, hidden and deceptive fees can quickly add up and strain families savings and create a barrier to housing access. SB 251 would also stop landlords from charging fees for services they don’t provide. Currently, many renters in Georgia are charged monthly fees for pest control services or trash services that the landlord does not actually provide – basically stealing money from renters.

SB 251 is a much-needed step to improve transparency and promote fairness for renters. Large corporate landlords have charged Georgia renters millions in hidden and deceptive fees in the midst of an affordability crisis. Georgia renters deserve the right to budget, and need the ability to fight back. Please vote to support SB 251.

Thank you,
YOUR NAME

EMAILS:

drew.echols@senate.ga.gov (Chair)
frank.ginn@senate.ga.gov,
emanuel.jones@senate.ga.gov,
tonya.anderson@senate.ga.gov,
tim.bearden@senate.ga.gov,
max.burns@senate.ga.gov,
clint.dixon@senate.ga.gov,
mike.hodges@senate.ga.gov,
donzella.james@senate.ga.gov,
derek.mallow@senate.ga.gov,
josh.mclaurin@senate.ga.gov,
sheikh.rahman@senate.ga.gov,
carden.summers@senate.ga.gov,
sam.watson@senate.ga.gov,
ben.watson@senate.ga.gov

Thanks for your support in pushing housing justice forward in Georgia!