1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to housing; creating a statewide landlord database; creating a civil penalty 
1.3 	for a failure to register with the statewide landlord database;proposing coding for 
1.4 	new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 462A.
1.5 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.6 	Section 1. [462A.45] STATEWIDE LANDLORD DATABASE.
1.7 		Subdivision 1.Definitions. (a) For the purposes of this section, the terms defined in this 
1.8 	subdivision have the meanings given.
1.9 	(b) "Landlord" has the meaning given in section 504B.001, subdivision 7.
1.10 	(c) "Residential building" has the meaning given in 504B.001, subdivision 11.
1.11 	(d) "Tenant" has the meaning given to "residential tenant" in section 504B.001, 
1.12 	subdivision 12.
1.13 		Subd. 2.Statewide landlord database. The commissioner of the Housing Finance 
1.14 	Agency shall create a statewide landlord database that collects and retains the information 
1.15 	required in this section. The agency must not charge a fee to a landlord for annually 
1.16 	submitting information to the database. Access to the database must also be at no cost and 
1.17 	the information submitted must be accessible to the public through a public website that 
1.18 	can be searched by a public user. The database must allow tenants and prospective tenants 
1.19 	to report rental units or landlords who cannot be found in the database.
1.20 		Subd. 3.Landlord database; annual submissions. (a) Before renting a rental unit in 
1.21 	a residential building in the state or within 30 days of renting a rental unit in the state, a 
1.22 	landlord must provide the following information to the statewide landlord database:
2.1 	(1) the complete legal names of the owners of the residential building where the rental 
2.2 	property is located and, if the property is owned by a company or group of investors, the 
2.3 	complete legal names of each natural person who has an economic interest in the residential 
2.4 	building;
2.5 	(2) the business address of each natural person who owns an interest in the property;
2.6 	(3) the name, address, and contact information for the landlord or manager of the property;
2.7 	(4) the rent for each residential rental unit on the first day that the property is rented or 
2.8 	on January 1 of the year of the filing for a renewal; and
2.9 	(5) if the rental unit or the residential building has a rental license, the date of issue, 
2.10 	expiration, and jurisdiction issuing the license.
2.11 	(b) A landlord must annually update a submission for each rental unit or residential 
2.12 	building that the landlord is renting by February 1 or, if a unit is vacant, before or during 
2.13 	the first 30 days that the rental unit is occupied.
2.14 	(c) A landlord who fails to comply with this subdivision is subject to penalties under 
2.15 	subdivision 4.
2.16 		Subd. 4.Enforcement. (a) A tenant who is unable to locate a property or property owner 
2.17 	in the statewide landlord database shall notify the Housing Finance Agency that the landlord 
2.18 	or unit could not be found, and the tenant must provide their contact information, the unit 
2.19 	address, and the contact information for the landlord. The Housing Finance Agency must 
2.20 	send a letter to the landlord with information on the database and notice that the landlord 
2.21 	must provide the landlord's annual submission to the database within 30 days of the date 
2.22 	that the landlord received notice of the letter. The Housing Finance Agency must send the 
2.23 	tenant a copy of the letter. An enforcement action under paragraph (b) may not be brought 
2.24 	until 31 days after the date of the letter sent under this paragraph.
2.25 	(b) The attorney general may enforce this section. The court may award a civil penalty 
2.26 	of up to $5,000 if the court finds that the landlord has repeated knowing and willful violations 
2.27 	of this section.