Bill that would outlaw roommate rules like Fort Collins' U+2 awaits governor's signature

UPDATE, April 1: The Colorado House passed the Senate's changes to the bill, which would end basing residential occupancy limits on family relationships. Now it awaits the signature of Gov. Jared Polis.

ORIGINAL STORY: Fort Collins' U+2 residential occupancy ordinance that limits the number of roommates who can live together would become moot under a bill that has won support from both the Colorado House and the Senate.

House Bill 24-1007 would end residential occupancy limits like Fort Collins' U+2 rule. The bill says occupancy limits cannot be based on family relationships, but they can be based on health and safety standards or affordable housing program guidelines.

The sponsors of the bill say it is meant to increase more affordable housing options and encourage denser living. The bill targets local ordinances that bill sponsors say are arbitrary and discriminatory.

But before the bill can go to Gov. Jared Polis, who indicated his support for such a move at the start of the 2024 legislative session, the House will have to consider the Senate's amendments.

Track the bills: Will Colorado end occupancy limits and legalize more ADUs? Track top housing bills at Capitol

Those amendments added the exemption for affordable housing program guidelines and removed legislative declarations that state the purpose and goal of the bill.

Health and safety standards named in the bill include international building code standards, fire code regulations, and Colorado health department wastewater and water-quality standards.

What is Fort Collins' U+2?

Fort Collins has an occupancy ordinance that limits the number of unrelated people who can be roommates to no more than three people. While the rule has been in effect for decades, it was changed in 2005, making enforcement easier.

Fort Collins City Council is in the midst of evaluating whether to make changes to the ordinance, and it's on council's work session agenda for Tuesday, March 26.

In light of the state bill, the city could consider occupancy based on square footage and/or the International Property Maintenance Code and address behaviors through the public nuisance ordinance, meeting agenda documents provided by city staff advise.

Fort Collins lawmakers were split in their votes

The Senate passed the bill 20-14, and the House passed it by a margin of 40-20.

Fort Collins Sen. Joann Ginal voted no. In the House, Fort Collins Reps. Cathy Kipp and Andrew Boesenecker voted yes. Kipp and Boesenecker also signed on as co-sponsors endorsing the bill.

On the Senate floor ahead of the body's approval of the amended bill on March 18, Ginal said the bill takes away home rule and property rights.

She contends the enforcement of Fort Collins' U+2 ordinance has led to more families in neighborhoods and improved neighborhood quality.

Ginal also argued that eliminating occupancy rules won't cause rents to go down but will have the opposite effect, saying single-family homes will become less accessible to families because property owners can make more money charging by the tenant.

The bill won't help neighborhood quality, either, she said, reading statements from two Fort Collins residents. One resident said prior to the 2005 changes, their Avery Park neighborhood had to constantly deal with problems around trash, homes in disrepair and high noise levels.

"Occupancy limits in Fort Collins brought back green lawns, fixed front doors, picture windows, baby carriages (and) provides a supply of housing stock in our neighborhood that is nearly perfect for first-time homebuyers," she read.

In a second account, a resident described a neighboring home where up to 10 students were living, and all had their own vehicles. The place was "party central," and its residents had set up makeshift bedrooms in a sunroom and on a screened porch, which was being heated by a space heater.

When that homeowner sold her own home, it wasn't sold to a family but to an investor, Ginal said.

Ginal alluded to City Council's examination of its occupancy ordinance, saying "local government is waiting on this to pass because then they won't have to deal with it anymore. It'll be the state. And then people will not have a voice anymore because they're taking away local control."

Bill supporters argue that the change would increase housing supply, thereby decreasing demand and resulting in lower costs. They say any unwanted behaviors and unsafe practices can be dealt with using public nuisance ordinances and safety standards.

Supporters also contend the bill doesn't outlaw all occupancy rules and say that basing them on health and safety requirements is more equitable.

Many people who testified at a January hearing before a House committee said Black and Latino individuals are more likely to be harmed by limited housing stock and that people of color, students and LGBTQ residents are disproportionately affected by family-definition ordinances.

Proponents speaking in favor of the bill also said allowing more people to live in a home reduces the stress on commuter roads, reduces emissions and takes pressure off of building new construction, which leads to sprawl.

Kimberly Carracedo, the NoCo regional lead organizer for New Era Colorado, shared her fears about finding housing when she was a student at Colorado State University and said she sees the same fear in students today when she registers them to vote.

"All people should be able to live with their families of choice," she said. "Although occupancy limits aren't an issue that exclusively impact students, it burdens students who are just starting to manage their finances and begin their adult lives."

"How does three young adults splitting the rent of a five-bedroom home ensure health and safety when that home is safely coded to house five people?" she said.

Back in his January State of the State address, Polis specifically called out his desire to end certain occupancy limits.

"Ending discriminatory occupancy limits that especially hurt renters is another important way that we can break down harmful barriers to housing and create more equity," he said.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado bill to end family definitions for occupancy limits advances