April 5 Oakland City Council: Oakland Declaration of Housing State of Emergency

Oakland Declaration of Housing State of Emergency and Moratorium, and Moratorium on Evictions and Rent Increases

By Lynda Carson - April 1, 2016

Oakland - Activists urge you to join them as speakers at the Tuesday, April 5, 2016 - 5:00pm Oakland City Council meeting, to support Agenda Item #12, the Declaration of Housing State of Emergency and Moratorium, and Moratorium on Evictions and Rent Increases.

Oakland has an emergency housing crisis that has resulted in thousands of renters being displaced from their housing due to excessive rent increases, and unfair evictions. Activists want as many people as possible to support the proposals to protect renters, known as Agenda Item #12.

Declaration Of Housing State Of Emergency And Moratorium

Subject: Declaration Of Housing State Of Emergency And Moratorium From: Member Of The Public Recommendation: Adopt The Following Pieces Of Legislation: 1) A Resolution Declaring, Renewing And Continuing The City Council's Declaration Of A Local Housing Emergency Due To The Severe Impacts And Calamities Caused By The Critical Housing Shortage, Lack Of Affordable Home Ownership Opportunities And Skyrocketing Rental Rates Causing Displacement Of Long-Term Residents And Gentrification; Establishing A 90-Day Moratorium On No-Cause Evictions And On Rent Increases Not Authorized By Existing Rent Control Provisions; And

Moratorium On Evictions And Rent Increases

2) An Urgency Measure Adopting An Interim Ordinance Pursuant To Government Code Section 65858 Imposing A Moratorium On Certain Residential Rent Increases And On Evictions From All Residential Rental Units Except For Just Cause Evictions

Moratorium On Evictions And Rent Increases

Subject: Department Of Housing Emergency Moratorium From: Council President Gibson McElhaney & Council Member Guillen, On Behalf Of Members of the Public Recommendation: Interim Emergency Ordinance To Temporarily: 1) Eliminate The Exemptions From Rent Control For Owner-Occupied Duplexes And Triplexes And Substantially Rehabilitated Properties; 2) Place A Moratorium On Rent Increases Above The Annual CPI Adjustment; 3) Affirm The City’s Prohibition On Illegal Evictions; 4) Affirm The City's Duty To Publicize City Policies Establishing Tenant Rights; And 5) Direct The City Administrator To Evaluate Potential Permanent Rent Stabilization Measures

List Of Suggestions To Be Considered

The list of suggestions below was submitted to the City Council, and contains some actions that can be taken during the temporary housing state of emergency. If adopted by the City Council they can provide long-term protections to Oakland residents being displaced by unjust evictions and excessive rent increases.

• Require owners to file a petition with the Rent Adjustment Program for any rent increase above the approved Consumer Price Index (CPI).

• Enact “mandatory mediation” to be facilitated by the Rent Adjustment Program in the event of intended or threatened evictions — 3-day, 7-day, or 60-day notices — provided that mediation action is prior to filing for “unlawful detainer.”

• Change the definition of “affordable housing” to require that at least 5 percent of units be available to households at 15 percent to 30 percent of AMI (area median income).

• Strictly enforce Oakland’s 50 percent “local hire policy,” and extend the policy to private employment (with justifiable small business exemptions) to better assure access to jobs for Oakland residents and to better help lower income households pay median rents. To avert further displacement, city actions that reduce funds for provision of direct services to unemployed and other vulnerable residents that aim for success in the job market should be halted (unless such reduction is commensurate with reduction in state and federal revenue and grant funds).

• Make it illegal for owners to “deny” receiving rent payments of Tenants who are in complete compliance with their rental agreements and are being unjustly evicted by owner schemes that by-pass the “Just Cause for Eviction” law and reset to “Costa-Hawkins” rents.

• Require the same relocation benefits for tenants that were recently enacted for the Ellis Act (OMC 8.22.400) in situations where relocation is due to no fault of the tenant.

• Immediately enact the “revised” Condominium ordinance, which, despite completed legal reviews and re-revisions, has languished for at least the last two years.

• Require a 5 percent fee to be paid by sellers to offset the disruptive effects of “flipping” and property speculation.

• Stockpile and lease residential-suited city-owned land and buildings at cost to the Oakland Land Trust for production of permanently affordable (a) artists cooperatives, (b) transitional shelter for homeless, and (c) rental housing.

• Track and monitor “owner move-ins” for the first 2 years to assure that tenant displacement was legitimate.

• Provide an option to multi-unit housing developers to include either 25% affordable units on-site, or pay $200,000 per proportionate units into the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

• Establish a program to punish discrimination based on Section 8 as source of income.

To Get Involved As Speakers:

It is crucial for renters to appear early at the Tuesday, April 5th - 5:00pm meeting at the Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Oakland, so the Council Members can hear directly why this proposal is so important for the communities of Oakland. Please feel free to fill out a speaker card to be a speaker for Agenda Item #12.

Supporters of renter protections from all across the Bay Area are invited to send emails to the Oakland City Council, to urge them to pass the renter protections.

Oakland City Council members

D. Kalb dkalb [at] oaklandnet.com
A. Guiillen aguillen [at] oaklandnet.com
L. Mcelhaney lmcelhaney [at] oaklandnet.com
A. Cambell-Washington acambell-washington [at] oaklandnet.com
N. Gallo ngallo [at] oaklandnet.com
D. Brooks dbrokks [at] oaklandnet.com
L.Reid lreid [at] oaklandnet.com
R.Kaplan rkaplan [at] oaklandnet.com

Oakland Mayor L. Schaaf officeofthemayor [at] oaklandnet.com


dkalb [at] oaklandnet.com, aguillen [at] oaklandnet.com, lmcelhaney [at] oaklandnet.com, ACampbell-Washington [at] oaklandnet.com, ngallo [at] oaklandnet.com, dbrooks [at] oaklandnet.com, lreid [at] oaklandnet.com, atlarge [at] oaklandnet.com, rkaplan [at] oakladnet.com

Sample Letter:

Dear City Councilmembers:
 
I support the proposals to protect renters in Oakland as a way to provide stabilization to residents who live and work in Oakland. I am proud to support renter protections as a way to stabilize housing for our neighbors, communities, and growing workforce.
 
I absolutely agree that we have a an emergency housing crisis. Rent control and just cause eviction are the solutions to that problem, but are not enough. The renter protection proposals are the correct options and the right approach. The renter protection proposals will stabilize communities in oakland, and will stop landlords who are involved in economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system.
 
I encourage you to support the proposed renter protections in the list of suggestions, and urge you to support these renter protections indefinitely. Doing so will help to bring an end to economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system in Oakland, whole stabilizing communities in the process.

It is time to stop punishing renters by ignoring the plight of the working class, including school teachers, union workers, city workers, seniors, the disabled and low-income renters being displaced by greedy landlords involved in economic cleansing, and the eviction for profit system.  

Please adopt the suggestions provided to city leaders for Agenda Item #12 as real solutions to real problems. Let’s continue to work together to support the communities of Oakland, by stopping the economic cleansing taking place by those who are involved in the eviction for profit system. 


Sincerely,
(Your Name)

The tenants “civil rights movement” is also active throughout California. Stay connected and support the renter’s movement in your city, and other cities across the nation.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com


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