Legislation currently working its way through both the Missouri Senate and House of Representatives seeks to deal with landlord and tenant responsibilities in the wake of rising bedbug infestations.

Reported instances of bedbugs are increasing to a near pandemic state, according to the National Pest Management Association.

“Bedbug encounters have become much more common in public places than the previous year, in some instances increasing by 10, 20 or nearly 30 percent,” stated the NPMA in a 2011 news release.

Bedbugs are considered more a nuisance than a public health concern and should not be a cause for public panic since they are easily treated, according to the NPMA.

Although they feed on blood, no studies have shown they transmit any blood-borne diseases, according to the NPMA.

They typically live in mattresses, couches or bedding and are rarely larger than a poppy seed, which makes them hard to spot, according to the NPMA.

Because they can be extremely difficult to eradicate, the NPMA recommends professional treatment instead of a home remedy.

There have been no confirmed instances of bedbug infestations in any MU residence halls during the current academic year, MU spokesman Christian Basi said.

There were a few isolated instances in student apartments during the fall 2010 semester, but those were resolved through professional treatment and have not been recurring, Basi said.

“When we’ve had them, they’ve required heat treatment and we’ve physically inspected all surrounding apartments as well to ensure they’re clean,” Basi said.

The new legislation is seeking to proactively deal with this increasing problem, said Brad Green, legislative assistant to bill sponsor Senator Kevin Engler, R-District 3.

Currently, there are no set guidelines for how a landlord is supposed to deal with a reported infestation, so the new bill aims to clarify individual responsibilities, Green said.

Since infestations of bedbugs are increasing rapidly nationwide, Engler brought forth the bill to proactively ensure tenants are protected should their home become infested, Green said.

The bill only targets multi-family dwellings, so organizations such as MU, hotels or public schools will continue to be unregulated, Green said.

Going forward, the senator’s office will look into including public service industries such as hotels and schools in the legislation, should that need arise, Green said.

The bill states tenants and landlords will share responsibility for controlling and exterminating the pests. Tenants must inform the landlord in writing within seven days of a suspected infestation.

Landlords will be given seven days to visually inspect the property and 14 days to begin a treatment process with a certified pest control company, according to the bill.

Local real estate investor Don Seitz said he has not seen a single infestation at any of his properties in Columbia up to this point, but welcomes the new legislation. He said meeting the 14-day requirement to begin treatment would not be problematic, assuming his tenants informed him of the problem in a timely manner.

“In six years we’ve acquired over 140 units, and we’ve never seen an instance of bedbugs yet,” Seitz said. “I agree with the legislation because as a landlord, I’m only a phone call away from an exterminator at any given time.”