Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Crowley has proposed a statewide package of renter protections that would cap annual rent increases, address early lease-renewal deadlines for students and expand local oversight of rental housing. Crowley, Milwaukee County’s executive, announced the six-part “Fair Deal for Wisconsin Renters” on Wednesday, less than a month before the Nov. 3 election against Republican Tom Tiffany. His campaign did not specify how large an annual rent increase would be allowed or spell out the proposed student protections. The proposal comes as housing costs remain high, particularly in college communities such as Madison. Dane County’s median rent was about $1,500 in September, compared with roughly $1,400 nationally. Statewide, the median was about $1,200. The figures show increases of roughly 33% in Dane County and nearly 30% statewide since September 2020, although rents have eased from their 2023 peak. Wisconsin currently places no statewide limit on rent increases, and state law bars cities and counties from enacting rent-control ordinances. Any rent cap under Crowley’s plan would exempt newly built housing, according to his campaign. For students, Crowley says he wants to address a leasing system that can require tenants to sign or renew leases and pay deposits months before moving in. Madison City Council member Ellen Zhang, a University of Wisconsin-Madison junior who represents a district with many students, said she moved into her apartment Aug. 17 and was asked to renew by Sept. 18. Zhang said the increasingly early deadlines can pressure students to accept housing they might otherwise reject because of its price or condition. She welcomed Crowley’s proposal and said state action could give students protections local officials are unable to provide under current law. Other elements of the plan would restore local governments’ authority to conduct routine rental-property inspections, give tenants facing eviction more time and resources, help renters make needed repairs, and curb the use of fees and software that Crowley says can inflate housing costs. The campaign has not provided detailed rules for those measures. Local inspections could help identify maintenance problems earlier, Zhang said, and give tenants a clearer route to seek remedies for issues such as faulty floors, windows, locks or heating. The proposal would reverse or modify policies adopted during former Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s administration. A 2011 package of landlord-tenant law changes overturned Madison’s prior rule limiting when landlords could show or lease apartments during the opening months of a lease. Later changes also reduced local inspection authority and shortened the time before an initial eviction hearing by five days. Tiffany’s campaign did not respond to questions about Crowley’s plan or its own renter policies. His campaign website focuses some housing proposals on homeownership but does not list a renter-specific platform. Tiffany supported the 2011 landlord-tenant legislation as a state Assembly member and voted for a 2013 law that changed eviction rules as a state senator. Crowley said his experience as a longtime renter informed the proposal. He argued that stronger accountability would target bad actors without harming responsible landlords.