Oakland City Council - Demand a Moratorium on Evictions!

Council agenda: https://oakland.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=A&ID=478342&GUID=80ABC8C5-886C-4FBC-BC25-E2BA63A9AAE7

Item 12. Subject: Declaration Of Housing State Of Emergency And Moratorium
From: Members 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
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

The following is the ordinance the activist group proposed to create the moratorium. The demands the groups have asked to be solved during this moratorium are listed at the end of this post and can be found in the Oakland Post. At a minimum, either call or email your district council member, your at-large councilmember (Kaplan), the mayor (Schaaf) and the City Administrator (Landreth). Do appear on Tuesday to testify – emails mean little to the councilmembers because it places no pressure on them. You can either sign-up in advance via the City’s website or arrive in time to sign-up at the door. You will probably only have a minute or two to speak. Demand 1) the moratorium be declared, 2) the demands organized under the Post Salon be addressed, and 3) then feel free to offer personal experiences of either yourself, family or acquaintances.



DRAFT Ordinance
FILED Office of the City Clerk 2016 MAR 10 4:03 PM

OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
ORDINANCE No. _______ C.M.S.

Introduced by John George Democratic Club; Oakland Tenants Union; the Post Salon; Wellstone Democratic Club; other organizations; and other members of the public.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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.

WHEREAS, Government Code Section 36937 allows a city, including a charter city, to adopt an urgency ordinance to take effect immediately upon its adoption for the preservation of the public peace, health or safety upon a finding of acts constituting urgency thereof; and
WHEREAS, a report by the City of Oakland in September 2015 concluded that Oakland's market rate rents are well above what is affordable to the typical Oakland renter (http://www2.oaklandnet.com/oakca1/groups/ceda/documents/report/oak056016.pdf); and
WHEREAS, the typical Oakland renter earns less than $30,000 per year; and
WHEREAS, 60% of Oakland residents are renters; and
WHEREAS, the City of Oakland is experiencing an unprecedented housing crisis, with the median two-bedroom apartment now offered for rent at $2950 per month, an increase of 40% in the year between Summer of 2014 and Summer of 2015; and
WHEREAS, the typical Oakland renter could afford only $750 per month in gross rents; and
WHEREAS, in order to prevent the further displacement of Oakland's current residents from their home city, emergency measures are required to protect the access of Oakland residents, particularly low-income and working people, to rentals in the city; and
WHEREAS, the Housing shortage continues to overwhelm Oakland residents and has had a devastating impact upon the public health, and safety of our citizenry; and
WHEREAS, other jurisdictions in the Bay Area, namely, the City of Berkeley, the City and County of San Francisco, and the County of Alameda have recognized the gravity of the housing crisis in the State of California; and
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Oakland has declared its support of Oakland residents who can no longer afford to live in our City due to the escalating housing costs and rental rates; and hereby pledges to establish housing policies and programs to assist long term Oakland residents in their efforts to remain residents of our City; and
WHEREAS, emergency measures are required to protect the access of Oakland residents, particularly low-income and working people, to affordable housing in the city;

NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF OAKLAND does ordain as follows:

SECTION 1. The City Council finds and determines the foregoing recitals to be true and correct and hereby makes them a part of this ordinance.
SECTION 2. The City Council finds and determines, for the reasons stated in the recitals, the adoption of this ordinance is exempt from CEQA under (b)(3), and 15307 of the State CEQA Guidelines. Sections 15061
SECTION 3. From the effective date of this urgency Ordinance and continuing for a period of ninety (90) days (unless extended) no housing provider shall (a) serve or give of a rent increase that, on a cumulative basis over the 12 months preceding the effective date of proposed regulation, is greater than that which is allowed by existing local and state rental ordinances or b) take action to terminate any tenancy including, but not limited to, making a demand for possession of a rental unit, threatening to terminate a tenancy, serving any notice to quit or other eviction notice bringing any action to recover possession of a rental unit except for such “just cause” as provided for in the city's current rental ordinance.

For purposes of this Ordinance rent means the rental amount, including any amount paid directly to the housing provider for parking, storage, pets, or any other fee charge associated with the tenancy, other than fees or charges for utilities paid directly to the housing provider that the tenant is required to pay to the housing provider in the month immediately preceding the effective date of the rent increase.
SECTION 4. The city will develop and implement strategies that protect and expand the availability of housing affordable by the typical Oakland renter;
SECTION 5. Exceptions and Exemptions as to all provisions of Section 1 of this ordinance. The following are exempt from the moratorium established under Section 1 of this urgency Ordinance: 1) government-owned housing units; 2) housing units are controlled regulated (other than by this Ordinance) or subsidized by any government unit, agency or authority; 3) accommodations in motels, hotels, inns, tourist houses, rooming houses, and boarding houses, provided that such accommodations are not occupied by the same tenant for thirty (30) or more days; 4) commercial units; and 5) housing accommodation in any hospital, convent, monastery, extended care facility, convalescent home, nonprofit home for the aged or dormitory operated by an educational institution.
SECTION 6. Exceptions and Exemptions as to certain provisions of Section 1 of this Ordinance. The following are exempt from the moratorium as to serving or giving notices of rent increases or rent increases under Section 1 of this urgency Ordinance but are not exempt from the moratorium as to taking any action to terminate any tenancy except for cause. 1) units constructed after February 1, 1995; 2) units that are separately alienable from the title of any other dwelling (single-family homes, condominiums, etc.) and any other units exempt under the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act (California Civil Code, Section 1954150 and following) or any other applicable state or federal law.
SECTION 7. Enforcement. In any action by a housing provider to recover possession of a rental unit, the tenant may raise an affirmative defense any violation or noncompliance with the provisions of this Ordinance.
SECTION 8. Petition for Relief from Moratorium. This moratorium, without extension, shall only be effective for a period of ninety (90) days. If this moratorium as to prohibiting rent increases is extended beyond the ninety (90) day period, the City Council shall consider and adopt a procedure allowing any housing provider who claims that the moratorium's permitted rent is insufficient to provide a just and reasonable return to file a petition requesting relief from the extended moratorium by way of an additional rental increase, as well as procedures for hearings and appeals of such petitions.
SECTION 9. The City Clerk shall certify to the passage and adoption of this Ordinance causing it to be posted, as required by law, and it shall thereafter be in full force and effect. This Ordinance shall become effective immediately as an interim urgency ordinance, in order to protect the public health, safety and welfare.
SECTION 10. For the term of this ordinance, as set forth in Section 5 hereof, the provisions of this Ordinance shall govern, to the extent there is any conflict between the provisions of this Ordinance and the provisions of any other City code, ordinance, resolution or policy, and all such conflicting provisions shall be suspended.
SECTION 11. This Ordinance is enacted pursuant to the City of Oakland's general police powers, Section 106 of the Charter of the City of Oakland, Article XI of the California Constitution and Government Code section 65858.
SECTION 12. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this Ordinance is for any reason held by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this Ordinance. The City Council declares that it would have adopted this Ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause and phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase be declared invalid.


District 3 Councilmember McElheney and her staff have created their own ordinance creating the moratorium and have placed it into Item 12:

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
Report: https://oakland.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&ID=4373574&GUID=6A6AEF18-7034-498A-832C-9BB656827A5D



The following are the demands from the activists groups to be solved during the moratorium:


OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
ORDINANCE No.________ C.M.S.

Introduced by John George Democratic Club; Oakland Tenants Union; Post Salon; Wellstone Democratic Club; other organizations; and other members of the public.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADDENDUM TO
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.

Demands To Be Implemented By The End Of The Moratorium Period:

1. Require owners to file a petition with the Rent Adjustment Program for any rent increase above the approved Consumer Price Index (CPI). Modify the current Rent Adjustment Ordinance to remove the burden of responsibility from tenants. Tenants must not be made the responsible party to petition against unlawful acts of owners, nor be penalized for failure to petition against such illegal actions.

2. 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." Urgent joint mediation could resolve perceived problems and prevent or forestall catastrophic displacement.

3. Change the definition of "affordable housing" to require that at least 5% of units to be available to households at 15% to 30% of AMI (area median income). Per the City of Oakland 2015 Rental Survey (September 2015), 50% of Oakland tenants (family of 4) have incomes less than $30,000, and can afford a gross rent of no more than $750, while the median market rent for a 2-bedroom apartment is $2,950.00. To afford median rent, a one wage-earner household would have to work 185 hours each week.

4. Strictly enforce Oakland's 50% "local hire policy," and extend the policy to private employment (with justifiable small business exemptions) to assure access to jobs for Oakland residents to better help existing households pay median rents.

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

6. Require the same relocation benefits for all rental 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.

7. Immediately enact the “revised” Condominium Conversion Ordinance that, despite completed legal reviews and re-revisions, has languished for at least the last two years.

8. Require a 5% fee to be paid by sellers to offset the disruptive effects of "flipping." and property speculation. The speculation fee would apply to property transfers that occur within 2 years of a prior sale where the current sale price exceeds the previous sale by 25% or more.

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

10. Track and monitor "owner move-ins" for the first 2 years to assure that tenant displacement was legitimate.
11. 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.

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