Phoenix's AC rule, explained for renters and landlords

Phoenix's code already sets a maximum indoor temperature for rental homes that have cooling. It also bars owners from taking installed cooling out.

The rule

City Code § 39-5(B)(1)(b)

Cooling able to keep every habitable room, bathroom, and toilet room at no more than

Measured3 feet upabove the floor, in the center of the room.

In force now. There's no compliance deadline to wait for.

A limit for installed coolingEvery rental housing unit "where such systems are installed" must have cooling able to safely cool all habitable rooms, bathrooms, and flushing toilet rooms to 82°F with air conditioning or 86°F with evaporative cooling.
Permanent equipmentThe required cooling must come from permanently installed cooling facilities.
Bathrooms count herePhoenix's rule names bathrooms and toilet rooms along with habitable rooms. Houston, Dallas, and LA County name habitable rooms only.
UpkeepCooling systems must be kept hazard free, operational, and in good repair.

Ducted systemsDucted refrigerant based and evaporative systems can't be removed except for immediate repair or replacement.
Window and other non ducted unitsThey can't be removed except for immediate repair or replacement, unless a ducted system is available to cool the unit.
If cooling was removedA dwelling that once had a cooling system and lost it can't be occupied until a qualifying system is installed. Which replacements qualify depends on what was there before, so read § 39-5(B)(5) to (8).
A home that never had coolingThe 82°F and 86°F limits apply where cooling systems are installed. We found no line in this section that requires an owner to add cooling to a home that never had it. Other rules, such as state law on habitable conditions, may still apply to a specific home.

Rental housing in PhoenixThe section applies to every rental housing unit. A home its owner lives in isn't a rental housing unit.
Inside city limitsThis is the City of Phoenix's code. ZIP codes don't follow city lines, and nearby cities such as Tempe, Mesa, and Scottsdale set their own rules. The Arizona Attorney General says Tucson also uses 82°F.
State law applies tooArizona's landlord and tenant law covers essential services across the state. The Attorney General says that when heat creates a health and safety risk, a landlord has five days after written notice to act.

Put it in writingThe Attorney General says written notice starts the clock, and advises hand delivery or certified mail.
City helpThe City's Landlord and Tenant Program takes emergency assistance requests at (602) 262-7210. A central AC system above 82°F, or an evaporative cooler above 86°F, is a listed hazard. Eligibility rules apply, including a household income limit.
What the state says you may doIf the landlord doesn't act, the Attorney General says tenants may be able to make the repair and deduct the cost, end the lease, or sue for damages if they meet the statute's requirements.

Who takes interior cooling complaintsThe City's Code Compliance page lists a phone line, (602) 534-4444, but doesn't say whether it handles a home with no working cooling. Call to confirm before you rely on it.
PenaltiesWe haven't read the penalty provision for this section, so the pages don't state fine amounts.
State billA 2026 Arizona bill about maximum rental temperatures stalled early in the session. We haven't confirmed its final status, so nothing here depends on it.