Columbus City Council voted unanimously on Monday to pass regulations that would cap fees landlords pass on to tenants who are not directly billed for utility services.
The measure, sponsored by Councilmember Christopher Wyche, will cap administrative fees from landlords at $8 while requiring greater transparency in residents' bills. Furthermore, the measure bans landlords from charging residents more than what their utility bills actually cost.
Many tenants are not directly billed by the utility provider. Rather, the utility bills are sent to the landlord. Then the landlord often adds fees and charges when sending tenants the total they are required to pay.
Wyche said he hopes these changes will lead to greater enrollment in the city's utility assistance program. Previously, residents could only get utility assistance if they were billed directly from the utility company, and rarely if they were billed instead by their landlord.
At the moment, only 8,500 people across Columbus are enrolled in this program. Wyche hopes to double the number of people enrolled by next year.
This decision comes in spite of the fact that Columbus City Council just voted to raise water rates in late November, costing customers an extra $125 annually.
These changes are expected to go into effect over the next year.
