A bill mandating interest payments on security deposits and acceptance of reusable screening reports will not move forward this year, following opposition from the California Apartment Association. 

AB 2785 by Assemblywoman Lori D. Wilson, D-Suisun City, who placed the bill on the Assembly inactive list today, would have required landlords to pay interest to tenants on security deposits when the deposits were placed into interest-bearing accounts. While later removed by the author, the bill initially sought to cap tenant screening fees at $50, significantly changing the current system, which caps screening fees based on the rate of inflation. 

Moreover, the bill outlined specific scenarios in which landlords would need to refund the screening fee. These scenarios included a requirement that the landlord return a screening fee to any applicant who was not selected for tenancy. Landlords would also have been required to include a clear statement of the refund policy in all tenancy application forms. 

The latest version of the bill would have required rental property owners to accept a reusable screening report from an applicant. Legislation signed into law in 2022 allows prospective tenants to submit a single credit report for use in applying for housing at multiple properties within a 30-day window, eliminating the need to pay for separate credit checks for each application. However, the law made acceptance of the reports optional by landlords.