Efforts to reform D.C.’s eviction laws in response to a surge in unpaid rent are one step closer to becoming reality.

The D.C. Council on Tuesday passed the Emergency Rental Assistance Reform Amendment Act of 2025, a bill that aims to accelerate the process for evicting nonpaying tenants while ensuring those who qualify for emergency assistance can receive it and remain in their homes.

It was the first of two votes required before the legislation reaches the mayor’s desk.

The passage came after Mayor Muriel Bowser sent a letter Tuesday morning to Council Chair Phil Mendelson saying she doesn’t support the version of the bill that came out of the Committee on Human Services. Council Member Matthew Frumin, who chairs the committee, introduced new amendments at the full council meeting Tuesday afternoon and said he plans to further address concerns ahead of the final vote.

Three council members — Ward 7's Wendell Felder, Ward 5's Zachary Parker and at-Large Council Member Kenyan McDuffie — voted present, with the latter two saying they couldn't support the bill in its current form but hope the final version will assuage their concerns. The rest of the council members voted in support.

The bill is a permanent version of the emergency legislation the council passed Oct. 1 after real estate leaders spoke out about a mounting financial crisis in the rental housing sector caused by tenants not paying rent.

The bill gives judges more discretion to move eviction cases forward for tenants who are behind on rent, and it stops tenants from being able to automatically delay eviction cases by filing applications for the Emergency Rental Assistance Program.

The temporary bill has been effective in removing delays from eviction cases, the Committee on Human Services said in a report accompanying the bill. But CHS introduced a series of changes in its permanent legislation after hearing concerns from tenant advocates.

The largest of those changes would require more cooperation from landlords in the ERAP process and would allow courts to hold landlords in contempt or waive rent obligations if landlords don’t comply.

The amendments drew backlash from landlords, who told Bisnow the bill would create new avenues for eviction cases to be delayed. Those delays have been blamed for the $147M of unpaid rent citywide, according to the Office of the Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development.

The District's average of $2,207 of unpaid rent per unit is by far the highest in the nation, according to the committee.

Frumin introduced a series of amendments Monday evening that the council passed along with its first vote Tuesday. The amendments specify what type of information landlords must provide and increase the amount of time landlords have to provide it from 30 to 45 days.

The amendments helped address the concerns of landlord groups, Apartment and Office Building Association Director of Policy Communications Alex Rossello said in a text message after the vote Tuesday. But he added that they don’t change the group’s position that the bill would “inject confusion and delay into the process.”

Tenant advocacy group Legal Aid DC told Bisnow Monday it supported the bill that came out of committee. And Policy Manager Jen Jenkins said in a statement after the vote Tuesday the group still supports the bill after Frumin's amendments and appreciates his “efforts to carefully address the needs of both tenants and landlords.”

Bowser wrote in the letter Tuesday morning that she has “significant concerns” that the committee’s changes “will result in further delays in reducing the backlog of cases.”

“The addition of these requirements will place further burdens on housing providers — particularly small- and family-owned rental businesses — with additional compliance requirements that will further delay resolution of cases and further complicate an already strained system,” Bowser wrote.

A Bowser spokesperson said Tuesday afternoon that the mayor hasn't yet taken a position on Frumin's amendments.

During the council’s Tuesday morning breakfast meeting ahead of its legislative session, Frumin said he plans to have additional conversations with Bowser after reading her letter. He also said he would speak to housing industry stakeholders after the first vote and could address the concerns with more amendments before the bill is finalized and passed on the second vote. The second vote is expected in four weeks.

“Today is probably not the end of the story on this,” Frumin said at the breakfast.

UPDATE, APRIL 1, 4:15 P.M. ET: This story has been updated with a statement from Legal Aid DC Policy Manager Jen Jenkins.