Pass B26-0493 to Let DC Take Over Neglected Rental Buildings

I want the Council to pass B26-0493, the STRONG Homes Amendment Act. Too many DC tenants are stuck in buildings where landlords collect rent and let everything else fall apart: broken heat, mold, unsafe wiring, doors that don't lock. This bill gives the city a real tool to fix that. B26-0493 clarifies the grounds, notice, and procedures for putting a neglected building into receivership, so the city can step in and make repairs when a landlord won't. It also sets up cost recovery and lien mechanisms, so taxpayers aren't stuck footing the bill for someone else's slumlord practices, and it allows dissolution of a landlord's control when there's fraud or abuse involved. Tenant protections are built into the process instead of bolted on after the fact. Six Councilmembers already signed on to introduce this bill, and it's still sitting in committee. I want it brought to a vote and passed. Nobody should have to live in a building that's falling apart because the owner is content to collect rent and ignore repairs.