Another Statewide Rent Control Push
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Political Punch: Rent control is back on California’s agenda
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By Alexei Koseff San Francisco Chronicle
March 15, 2019
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Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press
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The push to expand rent control in California resumed in the Legislature on Thursday, just months after state voters overwhelmingly rejected an initiativethat would have removed barriers to new tenant protection laws.
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A group of Democratic legislators introduced bills to cap annual rent increases statewide, prevent evictions without just cause and return to cities the authority to adopt rent control ordinances for newer homes and apartments.
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The state strictly limited rent control practices in 1995 with the passage of the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which prohibited local governments from imposing rent control on apartments built after the law took effect or on single-family homes. It also banned cities from capping prices when a unit becomes vacant.
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Following a $100 million campaign, nearly 60 percent of California voters opposed a November ballot measure to undo Costa-Hawkins and give communities more flexibility on rent control. Proponents said local governments should be free to set their own rent laws and that tenants needed protection from out-of-control prices. Opponents argued that the measure would discourage construction of rental housing at a time when supply is tight in many cities.
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Despite the initiative’s defeat, Gov. Gavin Newsom told lawmakers in his State of the State address last month, “Get me a good package on rent stability this year and I will sign it.”
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The measures that Democrats unveiled Thursday would roll back pieces of Costa-Hawkins while leaving the broader law in place. Many of the details must still be worked out through the legislative process.
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Paul Chinn / The Chronicle
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AB1482, by Assemblyman David Chiu, D-San Francisco, would prevent landlords across the state from raising rents by more than an unspecified percentage above inflation each year.
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AB36, by Assemblyman Richard Bloom, D-Santa Monica, would allow cities to enact rent control on post-1995 buildings that are more than a decade old. It would clear the way for cities to limit rent hikes on single-family homes more than 10 years old. It includes an exemption for small landlords who own two or fewer units and does not the touch the ban on price caps for vacant units.
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AB1481, by Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda, would forbid landlords from evicting their tenants without a valid reason. What would be considered just cause has yet to be determined.
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AB724, by Assemblywoman Buffy Wicks, D-Oakland, would require landlords to register all of their rental units with state housing officials for the creation of a central database to track the amount and type of rental housing available.
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Last month, Oregon became the first state to pass a universal rent control law. It largely limits annual rent increases to 7 percent above inflation and bans no-cause evictions for tenants that have lived at a property for more than a year.
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