A bill that would repeal a statewide ban on rent control and prevent landlords from evicting tenants without giving a reason is headed to the House floor.

House Bill 2004 narrowly passed out of the House Human Services and Housing committee Thursday in a party-line vote.

But it emerged with a compromise amendment sponsored by Rep. Mark Meek, D-Gladstone, himself a real estate broker and landlord who was the swing vote on the committee.

The bill would lift the state's ban on local rent control measures, and it would largely end the practice of no-cause eviction for long-term tenants.

Landlords could still evict tenants for cause, such as lease violations or failing to pay rent.

They could also evict tenants to perform needed repairs, so the landlord or a family member could move into the property, or because they are selling the property to someone who intends to live in it. But in such cases, the landlord would have to pay the tenant one month's rent to help cover relocation costs.

The initial version of the bill would have required paying three months' rent, but Meek's rewrite reduced it to one.

Also under Meek's amendment, cities and counties that implement a rent-control measure would have to craft policies that provide landlords with a "fair rate of return," as determined by that city or county.

The city or county would also have to provide an appeal process for landlords seeking to raise rents higher than otherwise allowed. And any rent control would not apply to newly constructed rentals for five years, an effort to prevent the new rules from restricting investment in new housing.

The amendment would also allow landlords to evict renters without cause for the first six months of their tenancy. Meek said that was to protect landlords from having to pay out to tenants who turned out to be irresponsible.

"I was trying to protect landlords that took a risk on somebody," he said.

The amendment would exempt landlords who own fewer than five units from the requirement to pay relocation costs.

The bill didn't win over the four Republicans on the committee, including Rep. Duane Stark, R-Grants Pass, who is also a landlord.

"There are good landlords, and we keep demonizing the landlords and making it harder and harder on them," Stark said.

Renter advocacy groups cheered the decision to advance the bill.

"We urge quick passage of the bill by the full House of Representatives so that hearings can begin immediately in the Senate," Pam Phan, an organizer with the Community Alliance of Tenants, said in a statement. "Too many Oregonians are at risk of displacement and homelessness."

Landlords and real estate brokers largely testified that the bill would harm renters in the long run by reducing the rental housing supply.

-- Elliot Njus

enjus@oregonian.com

503-294-5034

@enjus