Ballot Alert!
Ballot Alert! Rent Control Initiative Submitted to the Attorney General for Title & Summary
Just days before Christmas, petitioners submitted initiative language entitled "Justice for Renters Act" to begin the process of qualifying an initiative for statewide voter approval.
The proposed language would repeal certain rental housing provider protections under the Costa-Hawkins Act, and nullify the State's ability to pre-empt local rent control. Specifically, the language bars the State from limiting the "right of any city, county, or city and county to maintain, enact, or expand residential rent control."
The Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, enacted in 1995, exempts certain kinds of residential rental units from rent control ordinances and allows housing providers to reset the rental rate on rent-controlled rental units when they become vacant or when the last rent-controlled tenant no longer resides at the unit.
The ballot initiative process requires the Attorney General to make the language available for public review, and to include fiscal estimates provided by the State's Department of Finance and the Legislative Analyst. Once this phase is complete, proponents may begin gathering signatures for qualification.
SCRHA and our statewide partner CalRHA are closely watching these developments to take necessary steps to protect housing providers.