Houston City Council has approved a Right to Air Conditioning ordinance requiring rental properties to provide and maintain operable air conditioning in habitable spaces, closing a longstanding loophole in the city’s Building Standards Code.

The ordinance, introduced by Council Member Alejandra Salinas, eliminates a provision that allowed rental properties to meet certain cooling requirements by providing window screens instead of refrigerated air equipment. The new standard establishes operable air conditioning as a basic health and safety requirement for Houston rental housing. 

Under the ordinance, landlords will have 120 days to comply. Property owners will have flexibility in how they meet the requirement. Acceptable cooling options include central air conditioning, window units, portable air-conditioning units and other refrigerated air equipment.

The ordinance does not require older buildings to be retrofitted with central air conditioning. Instead, property owners can use other forms of refrigerated air equipment to meet the new standard. 

The measure comes as Houston continues to face prolonged periods of extreme summer heat. City materials supporting the ordinance cite 2023 U.S. Census data showing thousands of renters in the Houston metropolitan area live in rental units without any air conditioning. A city presentation estimates more than 20,400 rental units in the Houston metro area lack air conditioning. 

Harris County Public Health reported more than 7,600 cases of heat-related illness between 2019 and 2023 and found that indoor environments without air conditioning significantly increase the risk of heat-related health problems. 

The ordinance was co-sponsored by Council Members Sallie Alcorn, Mario Castillo and Edward Pollard. It also received support from the Houston Apartment Association and community organizations serving and advocating for renters and low-income Houstonians, including Texas Housers, the Houston Food Bank and the Houston Tenants Union. 

The legislation also addresses concerns about the potential effect on housing affordability. An affordability review conducted by the Austin Housing Department found that a similar air-conditioning requirement would have a neutral impact on affordable housing and development costs. Supporters have also pointed to the lack of documented rent increases associated with similar requirements in Dallas, Denton and Austin. 

Enforcement will follow the city's existing Building Standards Code process. According to the ordinance FAQ, tenants can report potential violations through 311, after which a city inspector can investigate. Landlords will have an opportunity to correct violations before administrative citations or summonses are issued when violations remain unresolved. 

The council's action builds on Salinas' broader efforts to increase access to cooling during Houston's hot summer months. Her office is also distributing 125 free portable air-conditioning units to eligible residents, including seniors, low-income households, disabled veterans, individuals with disabilities and families experiencing financial hardship. 

The new ordinance represents a significant change to Houston's rental housing standards by making operable refrigerated air equipment a required feature of habitable rental spaces and removing the window-screen exemption that previously allowed some properties to operate without air conditioning.