The Forbidding the Algorithmic Inflation of Rent (FAIR) Act is a New Jersey law signed by Gov. Mikie Sherrill on July 20, 2026 that bars rent-setting software from pooling nonpublic pricing data. Its enactment made New Jersey the fourth state to regulate rent-pricing algorithms (Source: nj.gov).
Status and timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| July 20, 2026 | Signed into law by Gov. Mikie Sherrill (Source: nj.gov) |
Key provisions
The law prohibits rent-setting software from pooling nonpublic pricing data — the mechanism at issue in the antitrust litigation against revenue-management vendors, in which algorithms trained on competitors' private rent and occupancy data are alleged to coordinate pricing across nominally competing landlords — and bars landlords from using shared pricing algorithms to coordinate rents or occupancy (Source: nj.gov). Attorney General Jennifer Davenport tied the law to the state's ongoing algorithmic-collusion litigation (Source: nj.gov).
Reactions
The International Center for Law & Economics published a July 23, 2026 critique arguing the law's "collusion by algorithm" standard sweeps too broadly and will not address housing supply (Source: truthonthemarket.com).
Related state laws
New Jersey is the fourth state to regulate rent-pricing algorithms (Source: nj.gov). The measure joins a broader wave of state algorithmic-pricing legislation that includes the New York Algorithmic Pricing Disclosure Act (disclosure mandate, effective November 2025) and the Maryland grocery surveillance-pricing law (April 2026); the underlying antitrust theory is covered at Algorithmic Pricing and Antitrust.