H 8363Cities & Towns

Towns and Cities - Zoning Ordinances

This bill lets cities and towns require private landlords to obtain a special license to rent to college students.

Held for study

Population
Affected

Introduced Mar 27, 2026Committee House Municipal Government & Housing

Plain-English Summary

This bill allows cities and towns to create local rules requiring landlords to get a special license if they rent a home or apartment exclusively to college or university students. Under this bill, towns can require these landlords to register their properties, obtain annual licenses, and pass property inspections. The legislation applies to private landlords but does not apply to college-owned dormitories, university-leased housing, or government-subsidized housing.

For younger readers

This bill gives towns the power to make a new rule for people who rent their houses to college students. If a house is rented only to students, the town can make the owner get a special permission slip called a license. To get the license, the owner might have to let the town inspect the house to make sure it is safe. This rule would only be for regular houses, not the dorms where students live on a college campus.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

College studentsPrivate landlordsMunicipal governmentsReal estate investorsEducational institutions

Impacted communities

All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely. The bill enables municipalities to require business licenses and inspections for a specific class of rental properties. Treating student housing as a distinct land-use or licensing category has generally been upheld under local zoning and police powers, provided it doesn't violate the Equal Protection Clause. Because students are not a federally protected class under fair housing laws, this targeted licensing is generally constitutionally permissible.

Estimated cost

Amount unknown

Estimated revenue

Amount unknown

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Grants municipalities the ability to mandate inspections, helping ensure that landlords provide safe, habitable, and well-maintained living conditions for student renters.
Explicitly exempts public housing and subsidized units, protecting low-income and vulnerable populations from unintended regulatory burdens or associated rent increases.
Empowers local communities to regulate high-density student housing, which can help manage neighborhood impacts, preserve community welfare, and prevent exploitative landlord practices.
Could lead landlords to increase rent prices to cover the costs of new licensing fees and mandatory inspections, making off-campus housing less affordable for low-income students.
May incentivize property owners to refuse renting to students entirely to avoid the new regulations, exacerbating housing shortages for young adults.
Grants municipalities broad enforcement powers that could potentially be used to unfairly target, over-police, or marginalize neighborhoods with high concentrations of student renters.

For Conservatives

Reinforces the principle of decentralized government by granting local municipalities the authority to create and enforce their own property ordinances.
Allows towns to implement inspections and enforcement mechanisms that can help maintain property values, order, and traditional standards in neighborhoods bordering college campuses.
Exempts educational institutions from the regulations, keeping the focus strictly on the private off-campus housing market and avoiding unnecessary interference with university operations.
Imposes new licensing requirements and inspection regulations on private property owners, infringing on their free-market rights to rent their properties without government interference.
Creates additional administrative burdens and fees for landlords, increasing the cost of doing business and expanding the size and scope of local government bureaucracy.
Unfairly targets a specific demographic by creating special rules for properties rented exclusively to students, rather than applying uniform property rights standards to all rentals.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 25 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 45-24 of the General Laws entitled "Zoning Ordinances" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 45-24-78. Student housing licensing.

(a) Definitions. When used in this section, the following words and phrases shall be given the following meanings:

(1) “Student” means an individual enrolled as an undergraduate or graduate student at any state college as defined in § 16-17.1-1 as well as any private university or college within the state. who commutes to a campus.

(2) “Student housing” means a dwelling unit inhabited exclusively by students.

(b) Authority.

(1) A municipality may, through ordinance, require private real property owners to obtain a license to operate a dwelling unit as student housing. An ordinance adopted pursuant to this section may include, but is not limited to:

(i) Annual or periodic licensing or registration requirements;

(ii) Inspection requirements;

(iii) Enforcement procedures; and

(iv) Administrative appeal procedures.

(1) This section shall apply to dwelling units located within the boundaries of the municipality enacting the ordinance.

(2) This section shall not apply to:

(i) Dormitories, residence halls, or other housing owned, operated, or directly controlled by an educational institution;

(ii) Dwelling units owned or leased by an educational institution; and

(iii) Dwelling units where rents are regulated under a federal, state, or local housing program limiting rent levels including, but not limited to, public housing or units rented through subsidies, vouchers or waiver programs.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.