Bill advances to allow tenants with liability insurance to keep pets in rental units

In a move that could be a step toward addressing Maui’s chronic overpopulation of dogs and cats, a bill making its way through the state Senate would prohibit landlords from using rental agreements to forbid pets in tenants’ homes, if they obtain liability insurance to cover pet damages.

Senate Bill 416 would amend Hawaiʻi’s landlord-tenant code to prohibit rental agreements from stopping tenants from keeping pet animals in dwelling units, subject to certain conditions. The bill was heard Monday morning and recommended for approval by the Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection.

To elaborate on the “certain conditions,” the bill says: “No rental agreement shall prohibit a tenant from keeping a pet animal in the dwelling unit; provided that the tenant obtains and maintains liability insurance to cover personal or property damages caused by the pet animal; provided further that this section shall not apply where the articles of incorporation, declaration, bylaws, administrative rules, house rules, association documents, or a similar document of a condominium property regime or planned community association prohibits the presence of pet animals in the dwelling unit.”

Written public testimony was mostly in support of the bill, although there were some objections from landlords.

Thirty-five-year Maui resident and Maui Humane Society volunteer Ann Pitcaithley said she often hears tenants lament how their landlords won’t allow them to have pets, and she testified in strong support of the bill as an advocate for pet welfare and pet owners.

“I own two cats and can relate to the deep emotional bonds people have with their pets,” she said. “They are a part of the family. Sometimes, their pet is the only member of their family. . . . In conducting a search on Maui Craigslist, it is almost impossible to find rentals that allow pets. Landlords who do allow pets, have imposed additional cost prohibitive monthly fees and deposits for pet owners. There are no limits to the amount that landlords can raise the rent or charge for pets.”

Pitcaithley said the situation is so dire that some people choose homelessness over giving up their pets.

Wildfire survivors “have left Maui or had to settle for Maui rentals that did not allow pets,” she said. “As a result, finding no other options, has had to leave their pets behind. There have been reports of animal abandonment of dogs and cats on the streets, or the dumping of cats at cat colonies, in the hopes that others will care for them. It is also a crisis for Maui Humane Society, which has been at over-capacity due to pets surrendered since August 2023 after the Lahaina fires.”

Heather McVay said: “This bill will improve the lives of so many individuals with disabilities that use a service animal or other assistance animal who regularly endure embarrassment, hassle, time delay, and disbelief and disdain when requesting an assistance animal as an accommodation.”

Lyndsey Garcia, testifying as director of advocacy on behalf of the Hawai‘i Association of REALTORS®, said that rental agreements are negotiated contracts between housing providers and tenants.

“While tenants may obtain insurance for their pet, housing providers also carry insurance on their property, which can become more costly when pets are involved,” Garcia said. “In some cases, insurance may not cover certain breeds or sizes of pets, or it may require additional premiums. Given these factors, we believe pet ownership should remain a negotiable term between the housing provider and tenant.”

The Department of the Attorney General recommended inserting an “impairment clause” in the measure to make clear it doesn’t affect contracts in effect before enactment of the new law. Without such a clause, the measure could violate the US Constitution’s Contract Clause.

Landlord Victor Brock strongly opposed the bill.

“I have had a tenant vacate who kept an unknown quantity of cats in the rental unit,” he said. “The cats urinated everywhere, and I had to remove and replace the drapes, carpets, all carpet-tack-boards, and an entire bank of kitchen cabinets (half of the kitchen and countertops) because the cats urinated alongside the cabinets and it soaked in. It took me months to get rid of the smell, as the urine had soaked into the concrete floor, and cost over $10,000 in repairs as well as lost rental revenue during the repair process. No amount of ‘security deposit’ would have covered this.”

The bill itself maintains that “pets contribute significantly to the emotional and mental health of individuals, as evidenced during the COVID-19 pandemic when 62% of pet owners reported improved mental health due to their pets and 84% noted strengthened emotional bonds.”

Drafters of the bill said that allowing pets in rental properties can promote housing stability because pet owners often face challenges in finding suitable housing and tend to stay longer in pet­ friendly accommodations.

“This stability benefits both tenants and landlords by reducing turnover rates,” the bill says. “Additionally, permitting pets in dwelling units broadens the pool of potential tenants for landlords, as a large portion of households own pets, and landlords can often command higher rents or charge pet-related fees, increasing rental income.”

The bill was introduced by West and South Maui Sen. Angus McKelvey and Oʻahu Sens. Stanley Chang, Kurt Fevella and Mike Gabbard.

Joining McKelvey in voting in favor of the bill in committee were committee Chair Jarrett Keohokalole of windward Oʻahu and Vice Chair Carol Fukunaga of urban Honolulu. Voting “aye” with reservations was Herbert “Tim” Richards III of North Hilo, Hāmākua, Kohala, Waimea, Waikoloa and North Kona, Hawaiʻi Island.