Utilities Clause
in Your Lease
What it actually means, what Maryland law says, what's specific to Baltimore - and exactly what to do. In plain English.
Quick Summary - What You Need to Know
- Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5) bars a landlord, agent or operator from intentionally interrupting, terminating or diminishing a tenant's utility service without the tenant's consent. It names water, heat, light, electricity, gas, elevator and similar services.
- § 9-15(c) makes a violation a misdemeanor punishable by a fine not exceeding $500, imprisonment of not more than 10 days, or both, for each offense. That is a criminal penalty on conviction, and the section names no sum payable to the tenant.
- Maryland's Real Prop. § 8-216 bars forcing a tenant out by willfully interrupting heat, running water, hot water, electricity or gas. The tenant may recover actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees and costs, and those remedies are not exclusive.
- A second city route runs through the building codes. Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1 bars shutting off a required utility to an occupied dwelling except for a temporary interruption during repairs or alterations, with a fine of not more than $500 per offense under Building Code § 114.4.3.
- If the landlord's unpaid bill threatens gas or electric service to a single-metered unit, Public Utilities § 7-309(c) lets you open an account in your own name without taking on the landlord's charges. Read the current text of § 9-15 yourself, because its pages on the city's code site carry no currency date.
Understanding the Utilities Clause
A utilities clause settles who pays which bill. Whether a service may be switched off is a different question, and in Baltimore it is answered by a criminal law written for the city.
Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15 is one of the Public Local Laws the General Assembly enacts for Baltimore City. Subsection (b)(5) bars a landlord from intentionally interrupting, terminating or diminishing a tenant's utility service without consent.
Subsection (c) sets a fine not exceeding $500, up to 10 days in jail, or both, for each offense.
Maryland's own statute works through damages rather than a fine. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216 bars forcing a tenant out by willfully interrupting heat, running water, hot water, electricity or gas, and lets the tenant recover actual damages plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs. The city's building codes add a third route, set out below.
What renters assume
The $500 in Baltimore's shutoff law reads like compensation, so a renter whose heat was cut expects that sum to be paid to them once the landlord is caught.
What is actually true
§ 9-15(c) sets a fine on conviction of a misdemeanor, up to $500, up to 10 days in jail, or both, for each offense, and the section names no sum payable to the tenant. The money claim our record carries for the tenant is Real Prop. § 8-216, which allows actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees and costs where service was cut to force the tenant out.
Baltimore's $500 is one of the 10 rows with a figure, and it sits level with Atlanta's $500, which is also a fine rather than a sum for the tenant. Above them are New York City at $10,000, Denver at $5,000, Las Vegas at $2,500, Washington, DC at $2,000 and Austin at $1,000.
Below them are Chicago and Boston at $300 and Detroit at $200.
The other 10 of the 20 rows carry no bar, because they answer in rent multiples, daily sums, damages or a civil action: Los Angeles, Miami, Seattle, Phoenix, Nashville, Philadelphia, Portland, Columbus, Newark and Charlotte. Baltimore's figure is a criminal fine on conviction.
What a Baltimore tenant can claim under § 8-216 is actual damages, which no bar can draw.
Plain English Version
Your lease can put the utility bills in your name, but in Baltimore a landlord may not intentionally cut, stop or reduce your water, heat, light, electricity, gas or elevator service without your consent. Doing so is a crime under the city's Public Local Laws, with a fine of up to $500, up to 10 days in jail, or both, for each offense.
That fine is not described as money for you. Under Maryland law you can sue for your actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees when a landlord cuts service to force you out.
Utilities Clause Example - What the Wording Looks Like in Baltimore, MD
The sample clause below is real lease language - a court quoted it word for word, and then ruled on it. What the judge decided is at the bottom of this block.
Find the equivalent paragraph in your own lease and read the two side by side. The wording will differ; the moving parts rarely do.
[t]enant shall be responsible for all utilities and services incurred in connection with the Premises.
Quoted from the published opinion in Dinh v. Raines, No. S-18262 (Alaska Feb. 23, 2024). Judicial opinions are not subject to copyright; the lease language is reproduced in limited part for commentary under 17 U.S.C. § 107.
“[t]enant shall be responsible for”
Responsibility here is for the bill, and Maryland keeps a rule for the opposite arrangement too. Where the lease puts a utility on the landlord, Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-212.3 lets a tenant who pays the utility directly deduct those payments from the rent, and that right “may not be waived in any lease.” A clause shifting every bill to the tenant is the ordinary case; the deduction matters where the lease leaves one account with the landlord.
“all utilities and services incurred”
The tenant who pays for all of it still does not hand the landlord the switch. Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5) bars a landlord, agent or operator from intentionally interrupting, terminating or diminishing, without the tenant's consent, any utility service furnished to the tenant. It names water, heat, light, electricity, gas and elevator service. Under § 9-15(c) a violation is a misdemeanor, with a fine not exceeding $500, imprisonment of not more than 10 days, or both, for each offense.
“in connection with”
The Dinh landlord ran his own units off the tenants' meter; Maryland's statute is written around the cutoff used to push a tenant out. Real Prop. § 8-216(a)(3) defines “Willful diminution of services” as intentionally interrupting heat, running water, hot water, electricity or gas “for the purpose of forcing a tenant to abandon the property”. § 8-216(b) bars taking possession that way, outside a warrant of restitution executed by a sheriff or constable, or after abandonment or surrender.
“the Premises”
Some of what reaches the Premises comes through the building, and Baltimore's building codes guard that too. Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1 bars an owner, operator or occupant from causing a required service or utility to be shut off from an occupied dwelling, “except for a temporary interruption necessary while repairs or alterations are in progress”. Building Code § 114.4.3 sets a fine of not more than $500 for each offense, and under § 114.4.2 each day a violation continues more than 14 days after a violation notice is a separate offense.
The clause survived. The landlord did not. The Alaska Supreme Court held that a “tenant pays all utilities” clause does not let a landlord shift the cost of utilities he diverts. He had housed his restaurant employees in unpermitted garage units and let them draw electricity and heating fuel through the tenants' meter and fuel tank. That was a willful diminution of essential services under AS 34.03.210, which exposes a landlord to exemplary damages of up to one and one-half times actual damages. The court affirmed that finding as to heat, hot water and electricity, and reversed as to internet and cable, which are not “essential services” under the Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act. The same utilities clause still carried the day on ordinary contract grounds: the tenants recovered $1,050 under AS 34.03.160 for the internet and cable, once they had given notice. Two things a renter should take from it - a broad “all utilities” clause is normal and enforceable, and it still does not make you the landlord's utility company.
One court, one lease, one state. That answer is not automatically yours, and your lease may be worded to land differently. Use this to know what to look for and what to ask - your state's tenant hotline or a local tenant attorney can answer it for your document.
Maryland Law on Utilities Clause
- Baltimore Public Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5) says an agent, a landlord, or an operator may not, "without the consent of the tenant, intentionally: (i) interrupt, terminate, or diminish, any utility service furnished to the tenant, including, but not limited to, water, heat, light, electricity, gas, elevator, or similar services to which under the expressed or implied terms of the tenancy the tenant may be entitled". Section 9-15(c) provides that a violator "is guilty of a misdemeanor and, on conviction, is subject to a fine not exceeding $500 or imprisonment of not more than 10 days, or both fine and imprisonment for each offense." The enrolled Chapter 637 of 2018 prints the same $500 and 10 days, joined by "and" rather than "or".
- Real Property § 8-216(a)(3) defines "Willful diminution of services" as "intentionally interrupting or causing the interruption of heat, running water, hot water, electricity, or gas by the landlord for the purpose of forcing a tenant to abandon the property", and § 8-216(b) bars taking or threatening to take possession by that or any other action except under a warrant of restitution executed by a sheriff or constable, or after abandonment or surrender. Under § 8-216(c) the tenant may recover "Actual damages" and "Reasonable attorney's fees and costs", and those remedies "are not exclusive." The definition excludes a landlord who stops paying for a utility after a final court order awarding possession, if the tenant had reasonable notice and the chance to open an account in the tenant's own name.
- The city's building-code route is separate from § 9-15. Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1, headed "Shut-off prohibited", applies to any service, facility, equipment or utility the code requires, and § 109.4 sends its penalties to Building Code § 114, where § 114.4.3 reads "The penalty for each offense is a fine of not more than $500." Under § 114.4.1 criminal proceedings generally need a notice of violation first, and § 114.3 lets the Building Official go to court, including by environmental citation, if a violation is not abated within 14 days, a period the Building Official may waive for an emergent issue.
- A tenant facing a shutoff for the landlord's unpaid bill has state protections. Under Public Utilities § 7-309(c), where gas or electric service to a single-metered unit is in the landlord's name and is threatened or terminated, the tenant "may apply for a new utility service account in the tenant's name" and "may not incur liability for charges due on the landlord's account", and § 7-309(e) requires a termination notice addressed to "All Occupants" at the service address at least 14 days before termination when the bill goes elsewhere. Real Property § 8-212.3 lets a tenant whose lease makes the landlord pay the utility deduct payments made to the utility from the rent, a right that "may not be waived in any lease."
Sources include Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5); Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(c); Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216; Baltimore City Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1; Baltimore City Building Code § 114.4; Baltimore City Building Code § 114.5; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-212.3; Md. Code, Pub. Util. § 7-309 - statutes change; verify the current text for your situation.
Maryland's statewide rule treats a utility cutoff as a way of taking possession without a court. Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216(a)(3) defines "Willful diminution of services" as "intentionally interrupting or causing the interruption of heat, running water, hot water, electricity, or gas by the landlord for the purpose of forcing a tenant to abandon the property".
§ 8-216(b) bars a landlord from taking or threatening to take possession by that or any other action, except under a warrant of restitution executed by a sheriff or constable, or after abandonment or surrender. The purpose in the definition matters: it is written around forcing a tenant out.
The remedy is money measured by the harm. Under § 8-216(c) the tenant may recover "Actual damages" and "Reasonable attorney's fees and costs", and those remedies "are not exclusive." Our record of § 8-216 carries no fixed sum, and Maryland's bar on the comparison comes from Baltimore's law.
The definition has one exclusion. It does not cover a landlord who stops paying for a utility after a final court order awarding possession, if the tenant had reasonable notice and the chance to open an account in the tenant's own name.
Two more state sections protect a tenant when the bill is the landlord's. Public Utilities § 7-309(c) covers gas or electric service to a single-metered unit that is in the landlord's name and is threatened or terminated. There the tenant "may apply for a new utility service account in the tenant's name" and "may not incur liability for charges due on the landlord's account".
§ 7-309(e) requires a termination notice addressed to "All Occupants" at the service address at least 14 days before termination when the bill goes elsewhere. Keep that notice with its date, because it shows when the landlord's account came under threat.
Where the lease puts a utility on the landlord, Real Prop. § 8-212.3 lets a tenant who pays the utility deduct those payments from the rent. That right "may not be waived in any lease."
Read each section as the General Assembly publishes it today. The state text behind this page is the 2026 Regular Session statute file.
Maryland Tenant Protections
Baltimore City Public Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5) bars an agent, a landlord or an operator from intentionally interrupting, terminating or diminishing, without the tenant's consent, any utility service furnished to the tenant. It names water, heat, light, electricity, gas, elevator or similar services to which the tenant may be entitled under the expressed or implied terms of the tenancy.
Under § 9-15(c) a violator is guilty of a misdemeanor and, on conviction, subject to a fine not exceeding $500, imprisonment of not more than 10 days, or both, for each offense. Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1 bars an owner, operator or occupant from causing a required service or utility to be shut off from an occupied dwelling, except for a temporary interruption during repairs or alterations.
Building Code § 114.4.3 sets a fine of not more than $500 for each offense.
Under Real Property § 8-216, a landlord may not force a tenant out by willfully interrupting heat, running water, hot water, electricity or gas, and the tenant may recover actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees and costs. Under Public Utilities § 7-309(c), where gas or electric service to a single-metered unit is in the landlord's name and is threatened or terminated, the tenant may open an account in the tenant's own name without liability for the landlord's charges.
Real Property § 8-212.3 lets a tenant whose lease makes the landlord pay the utility deduct payments made to the utility from the rent, a right that may not be waived in any lease.
What's Specific to Baltimore
Figures are the state rule, or the stronger city ordinance where one exists. Verify the current law for your own situation before relying on it.
Baltimore reaches a utility shutoff twice, through two different bodies of local law. One is the Code of Public Local Laws of Baltimore City, which the General Assembly enacts.
The other is the city's own Building, Fire, and Related Codes (2024 Edition). Each caps its fine at $500 per offense.
The Public Local Law is the direct one. § 9-15(b)(5) says an agent, a landlord, or an operator may not, "without the consent of the tenant, intentionally" interrupt, terminate or diminish "any utility service furnished to the tenant". It names water, heat, light, electricity, gas, elevator or similar services the tenant may be entitled to under the terms of the tenancy.
The penalty is criminal. Under § 9-15(c) a violator "is guilty of a misdemeanor and, on conviction, is subject to a fine not exceeding $500 or imprisonment of not more than 10 days, or both fine and imprisonment for each offense." The section names no sum payable to the tenant.
The section was rewritten by Chapter 637 of 2018 (House Bill 1553), effective October 1, 2018. The enrolled act prints the same $500 and 10 days, joined by "and" rather than "or".
The city's Public Local Laws pages carry no currency date of their own, so read the current text before relying on either wording.
The building code route reaches more than the landlord. Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1 is headed "Shut-off prohibited".
It bars an owner, operator or occupant from causing any required service, facility, equipment or utility "to be removed or shut off from or discontinued for any occupied dwelling, except for a temporary interruption necessary while repairs or alterations are in progress".
Its penalties sit in the Building Code. § 114.4.3 reads "The penalty for each offense is a fine of not more than $500." Under § 114.4.2, each day a violation continues more than 14 days after a violation notice counts as a separate offense, and § 114.4.1 generally needs a notice of violation before criminal proceedings.
A civil route runs beside it. § 114.3 lets the Building Official go to court, including by environmental citation, if a violation is not abated within 14 days, a period the Building Official may waive for an emergent issue. In an equity case § 114.5 adds a civil fine of not more than $500 for each day the violation continues unabated.
Every figure in this layer is a fine. For a tenant's own money claim, the routes our record holds are the state's: actual damages under § 8-216 and the rent deduction under § 8-212.3.
It decides which route fits. Where gas or electric for a single-metered unit is in the landlord's name, Public Utilities § 7-309(c) lets you open your own account if service is threatened or terminated.
Where the lease makes the landlord pay, Real Prop. § 8-212.3 lets you deduct payments you make to the utility from the rent, a right that may not be waived in any lease.
Red flag. Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5) bars intentionally interrupting a tenant's utility service without consent, a misdemeanor with a fine of up to $500 per offense.
§ 8-212.3 says a tenant's rights under that section "may not be waived in any lease." A clause that tries is worth raising before you sign.
Sources
The law this guide relies on, and where to read it. Statutes change, so confirm the current text before you act on it.
- Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(b)(5); Baltimore City Pub. Local Laws § 9-15(c); Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-216; Baltimore City Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1; Baltimore City Building Code § 114.4; Baltimore City Building Code § 114.5; Md. Code, Real Prop. § 8-212.3; Md. Code, Pub. Util. § 7-309, read on codes.baltimorecity.gov.
Red Flags to Watch Out For
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A shutoff reserved for late rent
§ 9-15(b)(5) bars a landlord from intentionally interrupting, terminating or diminishing your utility service without consent, and § 9-15(c) fines each offense up to $500.
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Heat cut to make you leave
Real Prop. § 8-216 bars taking possession by willful diminution of heat, running water, hot water, electricity or gas, outside a warrant of restitution executed by a sheriff or constable.
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Elevator service the landlord can stop at will
§ 9-15(b)(5) names elevator service among the services a landlord may not intentionally interrupt without consent, where the terms of the tenancy entitle you to it.
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A lease that waives the utility deduction
Where the lease makes the landlord pay a utility, Real Prop. § 8-212.3 lets you deduct payments made to the utility from the rent, and that right may not be waived in any lease.
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A shutoff notice addressed to All Occupants
Public Utilities § 7-309(e) requires that notice at least 14 days before termination when the bill goes elsewhere. It is the moment to use § 7-309(c) and open an account in your own name.
Your Rights as a Baltimore Tenant
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No shutoff without your consent
§ 9-15(b)(5) bars a landlord from intentionally interrupting, terminating or diminishing a utility service furnished to you without your consent.
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Damages and fees for a forced-out shutoff
§ 8-216(c) lets you recover actual damages and reasonable attorney's fees and costs, and those remedies are not exclusive.
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Your own account, free of the landlord's debt
Public Utilities § 7-309(c) lets you apply for gas or electric service in your own name without liability for charges due on the landlord's account.
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Utility payments off the rent
Where the lease makes the landlord pay, Real Prop. § 8-212.3 lets you deduct payments made to the utility from the rent, a right no lease can waive.
What To Do - Step by Step
Write down when the service stopped
Date and time, with a photograph of the meter, thermostat or tap. Once a violation runs more than 14 days past a violation notice, each further day is a separate offense under Building Code § 114.4.2.
Ask the utility why it stopped
A termination notice to "All Occupants" points to the landlord's account and to § 7-309(c). A shutoff at the landlord's hand points to § 9-15 and § 8-216.
Open your own account if the bill is the landlord's
For gas or electric to a single-metered unit in the landlord's name, § 7-309(c) lets you apply in your own name without taking on charges due on the landlord's account.
Report the shutoff to the city
Property Maintenance Code § 102.2.1 bars shutting off a required utility to an occupied dwelling. Building Code § 114.3 lets the Building Official go to court if a violation is not abated within 14 days, a period that may be waived for an emergent issue.
Keep the record of what it cost you
Receipts for a hotel, a heater or spoiled food are the kind of loss to document. Where service was cut to force you out, § 8-216(c) allows actual damages with reasonable attorney's fees and costs.
Read the current text, then take advice
The Public Local Laws pages carry no currency date, so open § 9-15, § 8-216 and § 7-309 as they read today, and speak to a tenant lawyer or legal aid office before withholding rent.