Chart: Anti-retaliation Statutes for Tenants, State by State

In most states, landlords cannot retaliate against a tenant for exercising a legal right. Here's a synopsis of those laws.

Most states protect tenants by making it illegal for landlords to retaliate against a tenant who has exercised a legal right. Protected legal rights include:

complaints to government authorities or to the landlord about health or safety problems
complaints to government agencies or lawsuits alleging illegal housing discrimination, and
political activity, including sponsorship of legislation or candidates, and participating in a tenants' union or organization.

The chart below lists those states that provide anti-retaliation protection for their tenants (a few cities, notably those with rent control, also provide protections).

For details on these states' laws, and how tenants can recoup fees, costs, and stop rent hikes, see Every Tenant's Legal Guide , by Janet Portman and Marcia Stewart (Nolo). To learn about these laws from the landlord's perspective, see Every Landlord's Legal Guide , by Marcia Stewart, Ralph Warner, and Janet Portman (Nolo).

States That Provide Anti-Retaliation Protection

To read these statutes, go to Nolo's State Research page and click on your state.

State	Statute
Alabama	Ala. Code § 35-9A-501
Alaska	Alaska Stat. § 34.03.310
Arizona	Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 33-1381
Arkansas	Ark. Code Ann. § 20-27-608
California	Cal. Civ. Code § 1942.51
Colorado	Colo. Rev. Stat. § 38-12-509
Connecticut	Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 47a-20, 47a-33
Delaware	Del. Code Ann. tit. 25, § 5516
District of Columbia	D.C. Code § 42-3505.02
Florida	Fla. Stat. Ann. § 83.64
Georgia	No statute
Hawaii	Haw. Rev. Stat. § 521-74
Idaho	No statute
Illinois	765 Ill. Comp. Stat. § 720/1
Indiana	No statute
Iowa	Iowa Code Ann. § 562A.36
Kansas	Kan. Stat. Ann. § 58-2572
Kentucky	Ky. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 383.705
Louisiana	No statute
Maine	4 Me. Rev. Stat. Ann. tit. 14, § 6001(3)(4)
Maryland	Md. Code Ann. [Real Prop.] § 8-208.1 1
Massachusetts	Mass. Ann. Laws ch. 239, § 2A; ch. 186, § 18
Michigan	Mich. Comp. Laws § 600.5720
Minnesota	Minn. Stat. Ann. §§ 504B.441, 504B.285
Mississippi	Miss. Code Ann. § 89-8-17
Missouri	No statute
Montana	Mont. Code Ann. § 70-24-431
Nebraska	Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-1439
Nevada	Nev. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 118A.510
New Hampshire	N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§ 540:13-a, 540:13-b
New Jersey	N.J. Stat. Ann. §§ 2A:42-10.10, 2A:42-10.12 2
New Mexico	N.M. Stat. Ann. § 47-8-39
New York	N.Y. Real Prop. Law § 223-b
North Carolina	N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-37.1
North Dakota	No statute
Ohio	Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 5321.02
Oklahoma	No statute
Oregon	Or. Rev. Stat. § 90.385
Pennsylvania	68 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. §§ 250.205, 399.11
Rhode Island	R.I. Gen. Laws Ann. §§ 34-20-10, 34-20-11
South Carolina	S.C. Code Ann. § 27-40-910
South Dakota	S.D. Cod. Laws Ann. §§ 43-32-27, 43-32-28
Tennessee	Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 66-28-514, § 68-111-105
Texas	Tex. Prop. Code § 92.331
Utah	Building Monitoring Sys. v. Paxton,905 P.2d 1215 (Utah 1995)
Vermont	Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 9, § 4465
Virginia	Va. Code Ann. § 55-248.39
Washington	Wash. Rev. Code §§ 59.18.240, 59.18.250
West Virginia	Imperial Colliery Co. v. Fout, 373 S.E.2d 489 (1988)
Wisconsin	Wis. Stat. § 704.45
Wyoming	No statute