CalRHA Legislative Update For August 15, 2023

LEGISLATURE RECONVENES FROM SUMMER RECESS ON AUGUST 14TH.
 

The Legislature has now returned from Summer Recess and will be conducting business before the Appropriations Committees and on the Floors of both houses. Bills need to pass the Appropriations (fiscal) committees by September 1st and the deadline for bills to pass to the Floor to the Governor is September 14th. He then has 30 days to sign or veto.

Highlights of Several Legislative Bills That CalRHA Continues to Lobby

• AB 12 (Haney) – Tenancy: Security Deposits – OPPOSE – Would prohibit a landlord from receiving a security deposit for a rental agreement in an amount in excess of one month’s rent, regardless of whether the residential property is unfurnished or furnished. This bill has been a priority for CalRHA and we have been opposing it. There are discussions underway of exempting small landlords, but that has yet to go into the bill and wouldn’t go far enough in protecting both landlords and tenant access to properties. The bill is currently pending on the Senate Floor.
  
• AB 1317 (Carillo) – Unbundled Parking – OPPOSE – Would require the owner of residential real property that provides parking with a residential unit to unbundle parking from the price of rent (“unbundled parking” selling or leasing parking spaces separate from the lease of the residential use). CalRHA has had productive conversations with the author’s office, but is still opposing. The bill is on the Senate Floor.
  
• ACA 1 (Aguiar-Curry) – Voter Approval Threshold – OPPOSE – ACA 1 lowers the voter threshold from a two-thirds supermajority to 55% majority to approve local (city, county, and special district) GO bonds and certain special taxes for affordable housing, public infrastructure, and permanent supportive housing projects, and defines those terms. ACA 1 passed the Assembly Local Government Committee in July and is pending in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
  
• ACA 10 (Haney) – Fundamental Human Right to Housing – OPPOSE – Establishes that the state recognizes the fundamental human right to adequate housing for everyone in California. This right is a shared obligation of state and local jurisdictions to respect, protect, and fulfill this right, on a non-discriminatory and equitable basis, with a view to progressively achieve the full realization of the right, by all appropriate means, including the adoption and amendment of legislative measures, to the maximum of available resources. ACA 10 passed the Assembly Housing and Community Development Committee in June and is pending a hearing in the Assembly Appropriations Committee. However, it has a fairly large fiscal estimate so may not pass that committee.
  
• SB 267 (Eggman) – Credit History of Persons Receiving Government Rent Subsidies – OPPOSE – Would prohibit the use of a person’s credit history as part of the application process for a rental housing accommodation without offering the applicant the option of providing alternative evidence of financial responsibility and ability to pay in instances in which there is a government rent subsidy and would require that the housing provider consider that alternative evidence in lieu of the person’s credit history. SB 267 is set for a hearing in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on August 16th.
  
• SB 567 (Durazo) – Just Cause Evictions – OPPOSE – This bill has been amended several times. In the Senate Judiciary Committee, the Chair negotiated language that removed the change to rent caps, etc. In the Assembly, the bill has been amended to give the rental property owners the ability to do mold remediation and broadens the definition of owner. Penalties in the bill are still a concern, but the author has expressed a willingness to work with the opposition. SB 567 is also set for a hearing in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on August 16th.

Initiative Update

On July 26th, the Secretary of State announced the rent control initiative, “Justice for Renters Act”, gathered enough signatures to qualify for the ballot next year. As such, it joins the list of eligible initiatives for the November 5th, 2024 ballot. Despite the fact that similar initiatives, Prop 10 from 2018 and Prop 21 from 2020, failed by 19 and 20 points, respectively, the proponents are at it again.

Michael Weinstein, the head of the AIDS healthcare foundation and main supporter of all three initiatives, held a virtual press conference the following day, advocating for the proposed proposition which would effectively repeal Costa-Hawkins. If passed, the initiative would allow local governments to impose strict rent control on newer apartments and single-family homes, as well as eliminate the state’s ban on vacancy control.

This is the top priority for CalRHA who is funding a coordinated campaign against the measure. For more information, please visit https://cal rha.org/advocacy/protecting-costa-hawkins/

As always, CalRHA will keep you informed as these bills make their way through the Legislature. We will be sure to send out Calls to Action when we are at a pivotal juncture and your involvement could help determine the outcome.