SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill into law Friday to prohibit landlords from retaliating against their tenants.
The new law will ban landlords from terminating leases, increasing rent, decreasing services or threatening lawsuits.
It also states that landlords can no longer refuse to renew a lease after a tenant complains about code violations or seeks help from elected leaders.
"With fear of retaliation, tenants would rather stay in inadequate living conditions than speak up," said Sen. Karina Villa (D-West Chicago). "This cannot continue. Tenants spend their hard-earned money on rent. At minimum, they should be confident when taking actions to ensure that their home is properly maintained."
Although, Republicans argue this change will hurt tenants and drive up costs.
"Bills like this force small landlords to sell to the big guys who could care less about a lot of the stuff you're talking about," said Sen. Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville). "This is a bad bill that's going to hurt some of the most vulnerable families in our district."
House Bill 4768 passed out of the Senate on a 34-19 vote with two senators voting present. The legislation passed out of the House on a 63-38 vote with one representative voting present.
The new law takes effect January 1.
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