INFORM

BALLOT MEASURES TO WATCH

Measures P and V

CITY OF RICHMOND - MEASURE P - RENT CPI CAP

The City of Richmond City Council placed Measure P on the November 8, 2022, ballot. It proposes to adopt an ordinance amending the existing provisions of Richmond Municipal Code (“RMC”) section 11.100.070(b), which would change the annual rent increase limitation for regulated units, from 100% of inflation to 60% of inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, or a flat 3%, whichever is less. EBRHA, NAA, CalRHA oppose this measure.

MEASURE P – CITY OF RICHMOND

Richmond’s existing rent control law is the strictest in California. It only allows annual rent adjustments to keep up with inflation – no more. The City Council introduced Measure P because of a temporary and highly unusual spike in inflation. Yet the council already had the authority to reduce rent adjustments temporarily until inflation comes down again. This permanent measure is totally unnecessary. City Council members are doing this for political gain. They did not even consult the City’s Rent Board. They have not considered the harmful long-term effects.

The vast majority of Richmond property owners are small mom and pop owners and many have immigrant and blue-collar backgrounds. These non-corporate, community-based small owners have given Richmond the lowest rents in the Bay Area.

Many Richmond property owners are also seniors. These rentals are their life savings and they rely on the income for their modest retirements. This new law would mean they will never be able to keep up with the rising cost of living let alone save for major repairs. We should not force this loss on anybody, especially our seniors.

Inflation pressure and complicated regulations have already caused many mom and pop owners to sell, often to big corporations – or to just stop renting. Passing Measure P will just make this worse.

Additionally, Richmond has only met 50% of its state-mandated housing targets. The City’s strict rent control and expensive regulations make it financially less feasible to build rental units. Measure P will further worsen our housing shortage, make it harder to meet affordable housing targets, and increase rents in the long run.

Please vote NO on this unnecessary measure: NO to attacking seniors and small mom and pop owners; NO to corporate takeover of rentals; and NO to worsening our housing shortage.

CITY OF OAKLAND – MEASURE V – JUST CAUSE

The City of Oakland City Council placed Measure V on the November 8, 2022 ballot. Oakland’s Just Cause for Eviction Ordinance has been in effect since 2003. It prevents property owners from evicting their renters except for “just cause” reasons, like if a renter hasn’t paid their rent, damaged the property, or is doing something illegal in their apartment. The law is meant to create greater housing stability for renters. This ballot measure would update the Just Cause ordinance by also preventing evictions of households with children and educators during a school year. It would also extend eviction protections to tenants who live in RVs and newly constructed units, except for the first 10 years after a new apartment was built. EBRHA, NAA, CalRHA Oppose this measure.

MEASURE V – CITY OF OAKLAND

Shall the Measure amending the Just Cause for Eviction Ordinance to: (1) prohibit no-fault evictions of children and educators during the school year; (2) extend eviction protections to renters in recreational vehicles (RVs), tiny homes on wheels, and newly constructed units except during the first 10 years after issuance of the certificate of occupancy; (3) remove failure to sign a new lease as grounds for eviction; and (4) make other clarifying amendments, be adopted?

EBRHA – ARGUMENT AGAINST MEASURE V

We are in a housing crisis. Anytime new housing isn’t created in a tight market, it drives rents even higher. The best protection for renters is to build more housing. We don’t need more modifications to Just Cause, like Measure V, that encourage developers NOT to invest in the city. Homeowners and small property owners (nine rental units or fewer) are also concerned about other proposed modifications – particularly those aimed

at rental agreement compliance, RVs and ADUs. Labor unions are also concerned because Measure V will do nothing to increase new contracts that create much-needed housing. We have plenty of land, resources and creativity. Let’s give developers more incentives to invest in Oakland and bring in more high-paying jobs and economic development to the city.

Rather than spending time on ballot initiatives like Measure V, which harms rental housing providers and homeowners and hurts renters in the long term by deterring the investment and development of new multi-unit buildings, City Council should be focusing on meeting the State-mandated RHNA production goals.

The bottom line is that city officials and leaders need to work with rental housing providers, labor unions, investors, and developers to create more housing for low- to moderate-income families.

The City of Oakland should engage in a proper analysis of impact. There has been no fiscal study or impact analysis by the City to determine how the proposed changes would affect Oakland’s housing development. We should continue broader stakeholder discussions with housing developers, investors and labor unions. Measure V is being rushed. Stakeholders had only been aware of it for less than a month before it was voted on and placed on the ballot. Legislators should be better informed before modifying complex housing policy. We urge you to vote against this modification that will significantly halt the investment in and production of new housing in Oakland. Organizations that oppose Measure V: East Bay Rental Housing Association, Housing Action Coalition, Jobs and Housing Coalition, CalRHA, and NAA