Tenant cooling devices

AN ACT Relating to renters' and mobile home occupants' ability to 1
install portable cooling devices; amending RCW 59.20.070; and adding 2
a new section to chapter 59.18 RCW. 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:4
NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. A new section is added to chapter 59.18 5
RCW to read as follows: 6
(1) Except as provided under subsections (3) through (5) of this 7
section, a landlord may not prohibit or restrict a tenant from 8
installing a portable cooling device of the tenant's choosing.9
(2) A landlord may not require a fee for the use or installation 10
of a portable cooling device. 11
(3) A landlord may prohibit or restrict a tenant from installing 12
a portable cooling device of any type if the dwelling already has a 13
permanently installed and fully operational heat pump that is capable 14
of cooling the dwelling, or if installation of the device would:15
(a) Violate state or local building codes, state law, or federal 16
law; 17
(b) Violate the device manufacturer's written safety guidelines 18
for the device; 19
(c) Cause unreasonable damage to the premises or render the 20
premises uninhabitable; or 21
S-3832.1
SENATE BILL 6200
State of Washington 69th Legislature 2026 Regular Session
By Senators Slatter, Alvarado, Conway, Frame, Hasegawa, Liias,
Nobles, Riccelli, Trudeau, Valdez, and C. Wilson
Read first time 01/16/26. Referred to Committee on Housing.
p. 1 SB 6200
(d) Require an electrical supply to power the device that cannot 1
be accommodated by the power service to the building, dwelling unit, 2
or circuit. 3
(4)(a) A landlord may prohibit or restrict a tenant from 4
installing a portable cooling device in a window if:5
(i) The window is a necessary egress from the dwelling unit;6
(ii) The device would interfere with the tenant's ability to lock 7
a window that is accessible from outside; 8
(iii) The device requires the excessive use of brackets or other 9
hardware that would damage or void the warranty of the window or 10
frame, puncture the exterior wall of the building, or otherwise cause 11
significant damages; or 12
(iv) The device cannot be secured in a way that prevents it from 13
falling out of the window. 14
(b) As a condition of installing a portable cooling device, a 15
landlord may require that the device be adequately drained to prevent 16
damage to the dwelling unit or building. 17
(5) In addition to the installation limitations under this 18
section, a landlord may also require that a portable cooling device 19
be subject to inspection or servicing by the landlord or landlord's 20
agent. Prior to any inspection or servicing of the portable cooling 21
unit, the landlord must provide at least a 48-hour notice unless 22
emergency inspection or servicing is required. 23
(6) A landlord may not enforce a restriction on portable cooling 24
devices against a tenant under this section unless the restrictions 25
are in writing and delivered to the tenant. 26
(7) A landlord is immune from liability for any claim for 27
damages, injury, or death caused by a portable cooling device 28
installed by the tenant. 29
(8) A landlord must notify tenants in their lease of their 30
rights, responsibilities, and restrictions related to installation 31
and operation of a portable cooling device. 32
(9) Nothing under this section shall be construed to limit the 33
responsibilities of landlords to provide reasonable accommodations 34
under existing state and federal law. 35
(10) A landlord is not responsible for any interruption in 36
electrical service resulting from the installation of a portable 37
cooling device that is not caused by the landlord, including 38
interruptions caused by an electrical supply's inability to 39
accommodate use of a portable cooling device. 40
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(11) Nothing in this section shall preclude a landlord from 1
retaining a portion of a security deposit for a lawful purpose under 2
RCW 59.18.280. 3
(12) For the purposes of this section, "portable cooling device" 4
means an air conditioner, portable heat pump, or evaporative cooler, 5
including a device mounted in a window or designed to sit on the 6
floor, but does not include devices whose installation or use 7
requires excessive alteration to the dwelling unit including, but not 8
limited to, the excessive use of brackets or other hardware under 9
subsection (4)(a)(iii) of this section. 10
Sec. 2. RCW 59.20.070 and 2023 c 105 s 9 are each amended to 11
read as follows: 12
A landlord shall not: 13
(1) Deny any tenant the right to sell such tenant's mobile home, 14
manufactured home, or park model within a park, or prohibit, in any 15
manner, any tenant from posting on the tenant's manufactured/mobile 16
home or park model, or on the rented mobile home lot, a commercially 17
reasonable "for sale" sign or any similar sign designed to advertise 18
the sale of the manufactured/mobile home or park model. In addition, 19
a landlord shall not require the removal of the mobile home, 20
manufactured home, or park model from the park because of the sale 21
thereof. Requirements for the transfer of the rental agreement are in 22
RCW 59.20.073. Nothing in this subsection prohibits a landlord from 23
enforcing reasonable rules or restrictions regarding the placement of 24
"for sale" signs on the tenant's manufactured/mobile home or park 25
model, or on the rented mobile home lot, if (a) the main purpose of 26
the rules or restrictions is to protect the safety of park tenants or 27
residents and (b) the rules or restrictions comply with RCW 28
59.20.045. The landlord may restrict the number of "for sale" signs 29
on the lot to two and may restrict the size of the signs to conform 30
to those in common use by home sale businesses; 31
(2) Restrict the tenant's freedom of choice in purchasing goods 32
or services but may reserve the right to approve or disapprove any 33
exterior structural improvements on a mobile home space: PROVIDED, 34
That door-to-door solicitation in the mobile home park may be 35
restricted in the rental agreement. Door-to-door solicitation does 36
not include public officials, housing and low-income assistance 37
organizations, or candidates for public office meeting or 38
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distributing information to tenants in accordance with subsection (3) 1
or (4) of this section; 2
(3) Prohibit the distribution of information or meetings by 3
tenants of the mobile home park to discuss mobile home living and 4
affairs, including political caucuses or forums for or speeches of 5
public officials or candidates for public office, meetings with 6
housing and low-income assistance organizations, or meetings of 7
organizations that represent the interest of tenants in the park, 8
held in a tenant's home or any of the park community or recreation 9
halls if these halls are open for the use of the tenants, conducted 10
at reasonable times and in an orderly manner on the premises, nor 11
penalize any tenant for participation in such activities;12
(4) Prohibit a public official, housing and low-income assistance 13
organization, or candidate for public office from meeting with or 14
distributing information to tenants in their individual mobile homes, 15
manufactured homes, or park models, nor penalize any tenant for 16
participating in these meetings or receiving this information;17
(5) Evict a tenant, terminate a rental agreement, decline to 18
renew a rental agreement, increase rental or other tenant 19
obligations, decrease services, or modify park rules in retaliation 20
for any of the following actions on the part of a tenant taken in 21
good faith: 22
(a) Filing a complaint with any federal, state, county, or 23
municipal governmental authority relating to any alleged violation by 24
the landlord of an applicable statute, regulation, or ordinance;25
(b) Requesting the landlord to comply with the provision of this 26
chapter or other applicable statute, regulation, or ordinance of the 27
state, county, or municipality; 28
(c) Filing suit against the landlord for any reason;29
(d) Participation or membership in any homeowners association or 30
group; 31
(6) Charge to any tenant a utility fee in excess of actual 32
utility costs or intentionally cause termination or interruption of 33
any tenant's utility services, including water, heat, electricity, or 34
gas, except when an interruption of a reasonable duration is required 35
to make necessary repairs; 36
(7)(a) Effect an involuntary termination of electric utility or 37
water service due to lack of payment to any tenant on any day for 38
which the national weather service has issued or has announced that 39
it intends to issue a heat-related alert, such as an excessive heat 40
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warning, a heat advisory, an excessive heat watch, or a similar 1
alert, for the area in which the tenant's address is located.2
(b)(i) A tenant at whose dwelling electric or water utility 3
service has been disconnected for lack of payment may request that 4
the landlord reconnect service on any day for which the national 5
weather service has issued or has announced that it intends to issue 6
a heat-related alert, such as an excessive heat warning, a heat 7
advisory, an excessive heat watch, or a similar alert, for the area 8
in which the tenant's address is located. The landlord shall inform 9
all tenants in the notice of disconnection of the ability to seek 10
reconnection and provide clear and specific information on how to 11
make that request, including how to contact the landlord.12
(ii) Upon receipt of a request made pursuant to (b)(i) of this 13
subsection, the landlord shall promptly make a reasonable attempt to 14
reconnect service to the dwelling. The landlord, in connection with a 15
request made pursuant to (b)(i) of this subsection, may require the 16
tenant to enter into a payment plan prior to reconnecting service to 17
the dwelling. If the landlord requires the tenant to enter into a 18
repayment plan, the repayment plan must comply with (c) of this 19
subsection. 20
(c) A repayment plan required by a landlord pursuant to (b)(ii) 21
of this subsection will be designed both to pay the past due bill by 22
the following May 15th, or as soon as possible after May 15th if 23
needed to maintain monthly payments that are no greater than six 24
percent of the tenant's monthly income, and to pay for continued 25
utility service. The plan may not require monthly payments in excess 26
of six percent of the tenant's monthly income. A tenant may agree to 27
pay a higher percentage during this period, but will not be in 28
default unless payment during this period is less than six percent of 29
the tenant's monthly income. If assistance payments are received by 30
the tenant subsequent to implementation of the plan, the tenant shall 31
contact the landlord to reformulate the plan; 32
(8) Remove or exclude a tenant from the premises unless this 33
chapter is complied with or the exclusion or removal is under an 34
appropriate court order; ((or))35
(9) Prevent the entry or require the removal of a mobile home, 36
manufactured home, or park model for the sole reason that the mobile 37
home has reached a certain age. Nothing in this subsection shall 38
limit a landlord's right to exclude or expel a mobile home, 39
manufactured home, or park model for any other reason, including but 40
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not limited to, failure to comply with fire, safety, and other 1
provisions of local ordinances and state laws relating to mobile 2
homes, manufactured homes, and park models, as long as the action 3
conforms to this chapter or any other relevant statutory provision ; 4
or5
(10)(a) Prohibit or restrict a tenant from installing a portable 6
cooling device of the tenant's choosing, unless installation of the 7
device would:8
(i) Violate state or local building codes, state law, or federal 9
law;10
(ii) Violate the device manufacturer's written safety guidelines 11
for the device;12
(iii) Cause unreasonable damage to the premises; or13
(iv) Require an electrical supply to power the device that 14
cannot be accommodated by the power service to the mobile home park 15
or mobile home lot.16
(b) For the purposes of this subsection, "portable cooling 17
device" means an air conditioner, portable heat pump, or evaporative 18
cooler, including a device mounted in a window or designed to sit on 19
the floor, but does not include devices whose installation or use 20
requires excessive alteration to the dwelling unit including, but not 21
limited to, the excessive use of brackets or other hardware under 22
section 1(4)(a)(iii) of this act. 23
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