D.C. Council Postpones Vote On TOPA Reform Bill

Local lawmakers were scheduled to hold a first vote Monday on a sweeping bill to reform D.C.'s landlord-tenant laws, but they decided to take more time.

The D.C. Council voted to postpone the first of two votes on the Rental Act until its July 28 meeting. Committee on Housing Chair Robert White was the lone member to vote against the delay. 

Mayor Muriel Bowser proposed the bill in February — with the real estate industry’s support — aiming to reduce the unprecedented rent delinquencies that have put landlords’ financial stability at risk and to make D.C. more appealing to investors to buy and build apartments. 

Bowser proposed reforms to the city's controversial Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act, including exempting buildings for their first 25 years after construction or after a substantial renovation. She also proposed a series of legal system changes to accelerate the eviction process. 

But White's committee made substantial changes to the bill, including shortening the TOPA exemption to 15 years and removing some of the eviction process changes. 

The mayor and industry groups opposed those changes. Bowser accused the committee of “gutting” the bill, the Apartment and Office Building Association said the committee's version “severely weakens” many important pieces of it, and the Small Multifamily Owners Association said it “watered down” the legislation. 

The two-week postponement was proposed at Monday afternoon's council meeting by Council Member Brianne Nadeau, who had previously proposed an alternative TOPA reform bill with an even shorter three-year exemption.

She said she heard from many constituencies, including D.C.'s Office of the Tenant Advocate and landlords, that the bill needs more time. Council Members Matthew Frumin and Brooke Pinto voiced agreement. 

“I think we could benefit from stepping back and trying to resolve things,” Frumin said. “I’m not sure they will land where I want them to, but I guess I feel confident that if we proceeded today, it won’t land where I want, so why not kick it down the road?”

White pushed back, arguing that his committee has done enough work and conducted enough public meetings to feel comfortable with the legislation. He also said the delay wouldn't allow for enough time to hold two votes before the council's August recess, a timeline he had told the administration he would meet. 

“The people we represent deserve better,” White said. “People are upset about the cost of housing, and at every turn we keep saying let’s do the same thing, let’s kick the can down the road, and nobody wants to take up stuff like this because you don’t get political points. You get punched in the face from both sides, but that’s what we’ve got to do sometimes.”

White added that he is happy to work with council members on changes to the bill during the next two weeks. 

Deputy Mayor Nina Albert said she hopes those changes bring the bill closer to its original form.

“Tabling the legislation provides the Council with another opportunity to restore critical provisions to the bill,” she said in a statement. “We urge members to work with the Administration on amendments that will enable us to achieve the RENTAL Act’s original intent of supporting and strengthening our affordable housing system.”

SMOA CEO Dean Hunter called the delay a “win for everyone.”

“If this had passed it would have been a disaster,” he said in a statement. “We need to take the time to ensure we do no more harm to the industry.”

AOBA CEO Lisa Mallory said she recognizes the need to get the bill right. 

“We urge the Council to use this additional time to fully address the structural failures of our legal system that have buried residents in debt and contributed to higher eviction rates,” she said in a statement. “There’s no room for further delay.”

The council on Monday did approve the city’s fiscal year 2026 budget with the first of two votes.

The budget included public funding that Bowser proposed for a new Commanders stadium on the RFK site, but it doesn’t approve the full stadium deal — the council plans to hold a separate hearing on that later this month.

The council’s meeting on the budget also featured a debate over Bowser’s proposal to repeal Initiative 82, the tipped minimum wage law that several restaurants this year have cited as contributing to their decision to shut down. Chairman Phil Mendelson had proposed a “compromise” Sunday to repeal the law and institute a new tipped minimum wage policy, but the council voted Monday to strip that provision from the budget. Members discussed potentially reaching another compromise on I-82 before the second vote.