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S2424AReal Estate

Businesses and Professions - Real Estate Sales Disclosures

This bill requires a radon test and, if levels are unsafe, a mitigation system before selling a residential property.

Introduced69 Yea0 Nay6 Not voting
Population
Affected
35
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 30, 2026Committee Senate Housing & Municipal Government

Plain-English Summary

This bill requires a radon test to be conducted before the sale of most residential real estate properties, starting on June 1, 2027. The test must be completed by a licensed professional within one year before the closing date. The results must be shared with the buyer, seller, and lender. Usually, the buyer pays for the test. If the test shows unsafe radon levels, a licensed professional must install a radon mitigation system before the property can be sold, or money must be set aside in escrow to pay for the system if it cannot be installed before closing.

For younger readers

Radon is an invisible gas that comes from the ground and can get trapped inside houses. Starting in 2027, this bill makes a rule that before someone can sell a house, it must be tested for radon gas. Usually, the person buying the house pays for the test. If the test shows there is too much radon in the house, a special system must be installed to clear the gas out before the house can be sold. If it can't be fixed in time, money must be set aside to pay for it later.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
HomebuyersHome sellersReal estate agentsRadon testing professionalsRadon mitigation contractors
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely. This bill regulates commercial and real estate transactions, which falls within the state's police power to protect public health and safety. It does not appear to violate free speech, due process, or protection from unreasonable searches, as the testing is tied to the voluntary sale of property.

Estimated cost
Homebuyers: Cost of radon test; Home sellers/Homebuyers: Cost of radon mitigation system (if unsafe levels are found)
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Protects public health by ensuring all new homebuyers and renters in multi-family dwellings are not exposed to high levels of cancer-causing radon gas.
  • Prevents low-income buyers from unknowingly purchasing a home with hazardous radon levels and being burdened with the sudden financial cost of installing a mitigation system.
  • Mandates environmental testing and remediation, creating a safer housing stock overall and improving indoor air quality within the community.
  • Adds a mandatory out-of-pocket cost for homebuyers to pay for the radon test, which could marginally increase the financial barrier to homeownership for low-income families.
  • Requires mandatory mitigation that could delay real estate closings, potentially complicating housing transitions for vulnerable buyers or those relying on strict timelines.
  • Mandating escrow for mitigation could strain the finances of lower-income sellers who might not have the extra cash available to cover expensive repairs before closing.
For Conservatives
  • Increases transparency in real estate transactions, allowing buyers to make fully informed decisions about the safety and true value of their property investments.
  • Creates a new, consistent revenue stream and job opportunities for private, licensed radon testing and mitigation contractors.
  • Explicitly exempts certain property transfers, such as foreclosures and inheritances, protecting lenders and grieving families from burdensome testing requirements.
  • Imposes a heavy-handed government mandate on private real estate transactions, undermining the freedom of buyers and sellers to negotiate terms or waive inspections as they see fit.
  • Forces mandatory mitigation for any test over an arbitrary government limit, increasing the cost of selling a home and creating unnecessary regulatory hurdles.
  • Requires government-licensed individuals to perform tests and mitigation, expanding state licensing power and creating a barrier to entry for independent contractors.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

2 versions
Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 52 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 5-20.8 of the General Laws entitled "Real Estate Sales Disclosures" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 5-20.8-14. Radon inspection and mitigation required.

(a) As used in this section, the following words shall have the following meanings, unless the context indicates otherwise:

(1) "Radon" means a radioactive gas found in the air that comes from the natural breakdown of uranium, thorium, or radium in soil, rock, and water.

(2) "Radon test" means measuring the amount of radon in an indoor space:

(i) With a device made for this purpose;

(ii) Which is conducted by a certified or licensed individual in accordance with § 23-61-5; and

(iii) In accordance with the protocols specified for the device used.

(3) "Residential real estate transaction" means an agreement to sell real property for residential purposes including, but not limited to, single family homes, duplexes, multi-family homes, and apartment complexes. "Residential real estate transaction" does not include property sold for non-residential commercial property, or property used for tourist or transient residential purposes as defined in § 42-63.1-2.

(4) "Unsafe radon levels" means radon levels that exceed the Environmental Protection Agency action level of 4.0 picocuries per liter (pCi/L).

(b) Transactions that do not require radon testing.

(1) The following transactions shall not be considered a residential real estate transaction, and shall not require a radon test if the transaction is:

(i) By a lender or an affiliate or subsidiary lender that acquired the home by foreclosure or deed in lieu of foreclosure;

(ii) A sheriff’s sale, tax sale, or sale by foreclosure, partition, or by court appointed trustee;

(iii) A transfer of a home to be converted by the buyer into a use other than residential or to be demolished; or

(iv) A devise pursuant to a will or an intestate inheritance.

(2) A residential real estate transaction property that has an existing radon mitigation system installed by a licensed radon contractor within three (3) years of the execution of the purchase and sale agreement; or

(3) A residential real estate transaction property that has an existing radon mitigation system installed by a licensed radon contractor mare than three (3) years prior to the execution of the purchase and sale agreement but has been tested for radon within three (3) years of the execution of the purchase and sales agreement.

(c) Mandatory radon testing and disclosure.

(1) Any purchase and sale agreement executed on June 1, 2027 and thereafter, as a prerequisite to a residential real estate transaction not covered in subsection (b) of this section, a radon test shall be performed no earlier than one year prior to the closing date of the residential real estate transaction.

(2) The results of any radon test performed up to one year prior to the closing shall be made available to the selling and buying parties of the transaction, as well as any lender designated by the buying parties.

(d) Unless otherwise agreed to by the parties, the buyer shall bear the burden of covering the cost of the radon test if it is completed after the execution of the purchase and sale agreement and the seller provided no certified test completed within one year prior to the execution of the purchase and sale agreement indication no unsafe radon level.

(e) Mitigation required. In the event that a radon test conducted in accordance with this section yields a result indication unsafe radon levels, a radon mitigation system shall be installed, by a certified or licensed individual in accordance with § 23-61-5, prior to the closing of the residential real estate transaction, if possible. In the event it is not possible to complete the work prior to the closing, the estimated amount of the cost of the mitigation system shall be held in escrow until the work is completed at which time the amount in escrow shall be distributed in accordance with an agreement signed by the seller and buyer to the closing.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on June 1, 2027.