Summary#
Bill 265 would add carbon monoxide and radon safety requirements to Nova Scotia’s Residential Tenancies Act. It would require landlords to install and maintain carbon monoxide alarms and to test rental homes for radon at least once every five years. The bill appears intended to reduce health risks in rental housing.
- Landlords would need to provide working carbon monoxide alarms and keep them in good repair.
- Tenants would need to report defective alarms and would not be allowed to disable or damage them.
- Landlords would need to complete radon tests lasting at least 91 days.
- Tenants would receive written radon test results within 30 days.
- If radon levels reach 200 Bq/m³ or more, landlords would need to carry out mitigation work within six months.
- Existing tenancies would have transition periods: up to six months for carbon monoxide alarms and up to 12 months for the first radon test.
The bill is at first reading. It would take effect only if proclaimed by the Governor in Council.
What it means for you#
- Tenants: Your rental home would need to have the required number of working carbon monoxide alarms. You would need to tell the landlord promptly if an alarm is not working.
- Tenants: You would receive a written copy of radon test results within 30 days after the landlord receives them.
- Tenants: You could request records about radon tests and mitigation work. The bill does not clearly provide a specific remedy or penalty if a landlord does not comply.
- Landlords: Before entering a new tenancy agreement, you would need to ensure the premises meet the carbon monoxide alarm requirements.
- Landlords: You would need to test, maintain, repair, and replace carbon monoxide alarms. The exact number, placement, testing schedule, and technical standards would be set partly by future regulations.
- Landlords: You would need to test each rental premises for radon at least once every five years and keep related records for at least ten years.
- Landlords: Additional radon testing would be required after mitigation work or certain major renovations.
- Landlords: If testing shows radon at or above 200 Bq/m³, you would need to arrange mitigation and later conduct another test.
- Apartment buildings: Future regulations could allow testing at representative locations to count for some units. The bill itself does not explain how this would work.
Expenses#
The bill may create costs for landlords, but no estimate is available.
- Landlords would pay for carbon monoxide alarms, batteries, testing, repairs, and replacements.
- Landlords would pay for radon testing at least once every five years.
- Landlords could face additional costs for radon mitigation, follow-up testing, and work after renovations.
- Landlords would also have record-keeping and tenant-notification duties.
- Tenants are not assigned responsibility for the costs of carbon monoxide alarms, radon testing, or radon mitigation.
- The bill does not state whether government funding or financial help would be available.
- The bill does not specify fines, fees, or other penalties for non-compliance.
- No publicly available information is provided about administrative or enforcement costs for government.
Proponents' View#
No direct statements from supporters are included in the supplied material. Based on the bill’s design:
- The bill appears intended to improve safety in rental homes by requiring carbon monoxide alarms.
- Regular radon testing could identify a health risk that may not be visible or detectable without testing.
- Requiring landlords to share test results would give tenants more information about their housing.
- Requiring mitigation when radon reaches 200 Bq/m³ or more could reduce tenants’ exposure to high radon levels.
- Keeping long-term records could help tenants and officials track testing and mitigation over time.
Opponents' View#
No direct statements from opponents are included in the supplied material. Possible concerns include:
- The bill could increase costs for landlords, especially when radon mitigation or repeated testing is needed. The bill does not explain whether these costs could affect rents.
- Important details are left to future regulations, including alarm placement, testing standards, qualifications for testers, and mitigation standards. This makes the final requirements difficult to assess now.
- The bill does not clearly state how compliance would be inspected or what penalties would apply.
- Testing every premises may create practical challenges in large, multi-unit buildings, although future regulations could provide exceptions or representative-testing rules.
- The requirement to reduce radon below 200 Bq/m³ and to levels “as low as is reasonably achievable” may be difficult to measure or enforce consistently.
- The bill does not identify public funding or support for landlords who must complete mitigation work.