COLUMBIA, South Carolina — On Tuesday, two South Carolina lawmakers made a push for big changes not only in public housing, but in any landlord-tenant situation.
State Senator Darrell Jackson filed a bill Tuesday that would allow county legislators to declare a state of emergency at a Housing Authority, suspending the board of commissioners and leaving the mayor in charge.
This comes after hundreds were displaced from Columbia's Allen Benedict Court apartments.
According to Jackson, if his new bill were in place, the county's legislative delegation would've been able to remove the entire Columbia Housing Authority board and the city could've appointed new commissioners.
"I think it's important because it installs a level of accountability," Jackson said. "It says, if you have extreme cases such as two people losing their lives, negligence that has been proven, then the entire commission should be held accountable."
Representative Marvin Pendarvis of Charleston is also speaking out with a bill he says will help make tenants safer.
He hopes to change the state's Residential Landlord Tenant Act, in part, by allowing tenants to make their own repairs and deducting the cost from their rent if their landlord isn't coming to fix it for them.
"People who rent in North Charleston and Columbia and the communities all across the great state of South Carolina need help," Pendarvis said. "My bill is an important first step toward addressing this crisis and keeping families in their home."
Both bills will need to go before committees for approval.