BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – An initiative offering tenants new protections from landlords will be in the hands of Bellingham voters this fall.

Initiative 25-03, proposed by Community First Whatcom earlier this year, seeks to change the city code to prevent landlords from interfering with or retaliating against renters engaging in “protected actions.”

Those actions include tenant organizing, reporting legal violations, registering other residents to vote and passing out leaflets in common areas or under other tenants’ doors.

The initiative would also prohibit landlords from requiring tenants sign a nondisclosure agreement relating to their lease agreement.

The city council voted unanimously on Monday night to send the initiative to the November general election ballot.

My Bellingham Now previously reported that two new ordinances prohibiting landlords from charging tenants and mobile home residents “junk fees” will take effect in Bellingham on Aug. 1.