Just Cause Oakland 20 years later, now called Causa Justa/Just Cause

More about attempts for just cause eviction protections in Oakland

By Lynda Carson - February 22, 2020

Oakland - After it became apparent during June of 2000 that Just Cause Oakland and the “just cause” eviction protection campaign failed to have enough valid signatures to turn in to get the initiative on the November ballot in 2000, Just Cause Oakland and the tenants of Oakland turned to the Residential Rent and Relocation Board (a.k.a. Oakland Rent Stabilization Board) - (a.k.a. rent board) to pass just cause eviction protections, including the Oakland City Council.

During the months of late 2000, thanks to the efforts of attorney Andrew Wolff who used to be a Commissioner on the rent board, just cause eviction protections were passed on two separate occasions by the “rent board”. However, the just cause eviction protections that were passed by the “rent board” were not passed into law by the Oakland City Council.

It was during November of 2000 that the just cause eviction protections were passed for the second time by the “rent board” due to the efforts of then Commissioner Andrew Wolf. This very much angered some members of the Oakland City Council, Mayor Jerry Brown, and Oakland’s landlords.

Eventually, in retaliation Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown wrongfully fired Commissioner Andrew Wolff from the rent board before his term expired. Documents revealed later from a former Councilman Dick Spees Task Force, they implied that the Oakland landlord lobby pressured the mayor's office into dismissing Wolf from the “rent board”, and that the intent of their focus (Dick Spees Task Force) was to “fix the rent board’’ with new board members more to their liking. In an Oakland Tribune, August 2, 2001 opinion piece by landlord supporter Greg McConnell, he tried to destroy the just cause eviction protection movement as he falsely claimed that just cause eviction protections were not needed, and the opinion piece may be found further below.

It should be noted that the landlords and the city were so fearful of Commissioner Wolff that the “rent board” was shut down on July 26, 2001, when former Commissioner Wolff refused to accept a July 24, 2001 faxed dismissal letter from Jerry Brown as being legal, and he tried to take his seat at the “rent board” that evening. As a result of Wolff's challenge to Jerry Brown it resulted in the city shutting down the rent board until Thursday August 23, 2001.

A protest and rally in support of Commissioner Wolff took place at the Oakland City Hall for the scheduled re-opening of the rent board that occurred on Thursday, August 23, 2001 at 6:30 P.M.

Mayor Jerry Brown replaced former Commissioner Wolf with a fellow named Ahmad Mansur on the rent board.

In response to his wrongful dismissal from the rent board, former Commissioner Andrew Wolff filed a law suit against Jerry Brown and the City of Oakland (Case No: 2001-20532d).

Case No: 2001-20532d, the suit against Jerry Brown, sought to over-turn the wrongful dismissal of former Commissioner Wolff from the rent board, and to return his full rights and privileges as a member of the board. Defendants listed on the summons/law suit were Jerry Brown, Rebecca Eisen, Kathryn Kasch, the City of Oakland, and the Oakland Housing Residential Rent and Relocation Board. The defendants had 30 Days after being served the summons to file a written response to the court.

Attorney Andrew Wolff was not allowed to return to the rent board but continues to be a staunch defender of tenant rights and defends many tenants with his law practice in Oakland.

As written in Andrew Wolf’s website, “For three years, Mr. Wolff served as a City Commissioner on the Oakland Rent Stabilization Board as a tenant representative appointed by then Mayor Elihu Harris. He is currently a member of the Consumer Attorneys of California, East Bay Tenant Bar Association, Alameda County Bar Association, and former Board Member of Housing Rights, Inc. Andrew Wolff is also one of three founding members of the Just Cause Eviction Protection Initiative, a grass-roots movement that started as an adjunct committee of the Oakland Tenants’ Union culminating into the Just Cause Eviction Ordinance protecting thousands of tenants in the City of Oakland. Mr. Wolff spent 3 years of his life involved in community organizing, attending City council meetings, and building a coalition to get the Just Cause Initiative on the Ballot, and he worked tirelessly to get the Initiative passed into law.”

For more about Wolff's wrongful dismissal from the rent board, see an August 3, 2001 Oakland Tribune article below...

Below that is an August 2, 2001, Oakland Tribune opinion piece by Greg McConnell trying to damage the just cause eviction protection movement before the second just cause eviction protection campaign took place in 2002.

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

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Article last updated: Oakland Tribune
Friday, August 03, 2001 4:47 AM MST   

Fired tenant activist says mayor erred

Brown denies political motivation

By Laura Counts
STAFF WRITER

OAKLAND -- A tenant activist is protesting Mayor Jerry
Brown's decision to remove him from the Residential
Rent and Relocation Board without a hearing because he
purchased a condominium.

The spat over removal of attorney Andrew Wolff, who
had served on the board as a tenant representative,
shut down last week's rent board meeting. It has
fueled the ire of activists who contend Brown violated
the City Charter and responded to pressure from
landlord groups.

Brown denies the move was politically motivated. After
an aide brought the issue to his attention, Brown said
he was inclined to let Wolff serve out the remaining
two months in his term. But City Attorney John Russo
told him Wolff no longer meets the criteria to be a
tenant representative.

"It does tend to undermine the structure of the board
(if he is no longer a tenant)," Brown said. "It casts
a legal cloud over these hearings."

Wolff has demanded a hearing. Under the charter,
members of boards and commissions can be removed for
good cause, only after a hearing of the City Council.

"I just think the way they are going about trying to
replace me is sidestepping the City Charter, because
they don't like having someone on the board who is
going to be critical of the city's position," he said.
"I don't believe the mayor has the legal authority to
do this."

The rent board, which rules on complaints about
violations of the city's rent ordinance, is comprised
of two tenant representatives, two landlords and three
"neutrals" -- people who are neither tenants nor
landlords, usually homeowners.

The uproar underlines the acrimony between Oakland
tenants and landlords, who have long been sparring
over changes to city rent laws. Tenants have been
fighting to get them strengthened, and landlords are
fighting just as hard against the tenant agenda.

Wolff was appointed in 1998 by then-Mayor Elihu
Harris, and his term would have expired in October. He
is a member of Oakland Tenants Union and a group
working to get a just-cause eviction measure on the
ballot next year.

Wolff said he made no secret about the fact he was
buying an Oakland condo.

He had even consulted Alan Beales, a landlord
representative on the board, as to whether he thought
it was a good deal. Wolff closed on the purchase in
February.

Beginning in April, Beales said he repeatedly
questioned whether Wolff could keep his seat.

"I don't think it is correct for him to stay," Beales
said. "He is doing a disservice to the tenant's cause,
and to his own profession (by fighting it)."

According to several accounts, Deputy City Attorney
Richard Illgen gave an opinion at a public meeting
that Wolff could serve out his term.

The rent ordinance only says representatives must be a
tenant when they are appointed, but gives no
instruction on what to do in the case of a change in
status.

Illgen did not return phone calls for comment.

But City Attorney Russo has since overruled Illgen. He
said Wolff is not being removed for cause, but no
longer qualifies for the seat because he is not a
tenant.

He likened it to a member of the Port Commission,
which requires Oakland residency, moving out of town.

"Based on the council's legislative history and an
attorney general's opinion in a similar case, he does
not qualify," Russo said. "The intent of the council
was clear. It has nothing to do with how he votes or
how he dresses -- he was a tenant and he is no
longer."

The mayor said he asked Russo for his opinion after
aide Justin Horner brought it to his attention.

Horner said he had several conversations with Wolff,
who told him he would step down when Brown found a
replacement for him.

"I had no advance notice he would make a big stink out
of it," Brown said.

Wolff disputes Horner's account. He said he told
Horner he might consider resigning if he knew his
replacement was "someone who I considered a positive
force, someone who would be independent."

Brown has nominated Ahmad Mansur, the chief executive
of NetFutures, a technology company that has worked on public
projects, including the computer program at the Acorn housing
project. His confirmation is scheduled for the city manager's
summer recess agenda -- actions Robert Bobb is authorized
to take during the council's break, but could still be rescinded
by the council in September.

Wolff received a terse letter from Brown on July 24,
saying he was no longer on the board. He showed up for
the July 24 rent board meeting anyway, and his arrival
caused a stir.

After several minutes of confusion, the meeting was
canceled -- ostensibly because board members could
not meet in closed session with someone who was not on the board.

But tenant groups read more into it. James Vann of the
Oakland Tenants Union said Brown had promised the
group during his campaign he would consult with them
on board appointments. Vann believes Brown only wants
to appoint tenants without activist backgrounds.

"There was no reason to target (Wolff) other than the
mayor is responding to pressure from landlords," he
said. "It's just another example of Jerry running
roughshod not just over tenants, but over Oakland. We
don't think he is giving tenants a modicum of
respect."

Even Beales said he believed Wolff was entitled to a
hearing.

"There are very strict regulations about how a
commission member may be terminated, and it does
take an act of the council," he said. "John (Russo) may
be right, but let's wear belts and suspenders (cover our
bases) too."
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1999-2001 by MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers

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(Oakland Tribune Aug 2, 2001 - Opinion piece by Greg McConnel.)

Owners, tenants find agreement

RENT control and just cause have been hot issues in Oakland for the past two years. As rents increased, tenants complained of economic evictions and demanded just cause, rent registration, zero annual rent adjustments and a better rent board.

Owners vigorously denied that they evicted tenants for economic reasons, both because such evictions are illegal and because with rare exception, owners only evict bad tenants. They opposed registration and countered with demands for annual rent adjustments based upon the Consumer Price Index. They railed against the rent board because decisions were slow and inconsistent.

Most council members lost patience with the bickering and just wanted the rent wars to go away. Dick Spees, however, saw that the two sides and the city actually agreed on one thing -- the rent board was ineffective.

Councilmember Spees convened a meeting of stakeholders to see if he could transition their shared displeasure with the rent board into consensus on a few significant changes. Over a two-month period, Spees, Vice Mayor Brunner, Councilmember Wan, the Oakland Association of Realtors, the Oakland Tenants Union, the Rental Housing Association and city staff ironed out various proposals.

Just cause was taken off the table. In exchange, tenants got strong penalties against owners who evict and raise the rent. Rent registration was rejected, but the parties agreed that owners must report the rent to the rent board when a new tenancy follows a 30-day termination.

Owners got an automatic annual adjustment based upon the average of the CPI less shelter and the full CPI, and a system for voluntary mediation. The rent board got a $1.5 million budget paid for by a $24 per unit fee that is split equally between owners and tenants.

More issues will be decided over the summer, including setting the rent for new tenancies that follow an eviction, and attorney fees.

Whether this is a great deal will be decided over the next few years. For now, the important thing is that stakeholders actually sat down together and listened to each other's positions. In the process, those who kept an open mind learned that people on the other side of the table had some valid points.

To be sure, owners hate the idea of expanding regulation, and there are many things that OAR would like to substitute for rent control. But given where we are, those kinds of changes could not be had at this time.

The bottom line is that we favor negotiation over street warfare. We believe that the consensus compromise creates a fair and rational way to discourage economic evictions and thereby completely eliminates any possible need for just cause evictions. It also gives owners a fair and predictable annual adjustment and a voluntary mediation process.

Whether this works depends in large part on whether owners and tenants are confident that the system is administered fairly, even handily, and with respect for the parties that appear before the agency. OAR will work in a collaborative effort with others to keep the rent board user-friendly to owners and tenants.

WE tip our hats to Spees for having the guts and patience to take the gamble that brought the parties to the table. We thank Vice Mayor Brunner for her important leadership, and acknowledge the hard work of Councilmember Wan and the other stakeholders. This has been a good start.

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Greg McConnell is a rental housing consultant and legislative advocate. He advises the Oakland Association of Realtors on local rent control matters.
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©1999-2001 by MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers

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Landlords lose lawsuit against Oakland’s just cause eviction protections

By Lynda Carson - February 24, 2020

Oakland - As mentioned in the article above, thanks to attorney Andrew Wolff, former Commissioner on the rent board, just cause eviction protections were passed by the rent board twice during the months of late 2000. However, they were not passed into law by the Oakland City Council.

Additionally, in retaliation former Commissioner Andrew Wolff was wrongfully dismissed from the rent board by Jerry Brown, and in response Andrew Wolff filed a lawsuit against Jerry Brown, Rebecca Eisen, Kathryn Kasch, the City of Oakland, and the Oakland Housing Residential Rent and Relocation Board.

Meanwhile, with Commissioner Wolff forced out of the rent board, Greg McConnell was trying to damage and destroy the just cause eviction protection movement before the second just cause eviction protection campaign took place in 2002. In the Oakland Tribune opinion piece posted further above, McConnell falsely claimed that just cause eviction protections were not needed because of some agreements made in a “Dick Spees Task Force” that included James E. Vann of the Oakland Tenants Union (OTU), and a few other members of the OTU. Andrew Wolff had no part in the "Dick Spees Task Force."

Regarding what occurred in “Dick Spees Task Force” that Greg McConnell referred to, in defense James Vann claimed that the landlords and the Oakland City Council had double-crossed him and the Oakland Tenants Union by abandoning some of the agreements that were made in the “Dick Spees Task Force” that were supposed to be voted on by the Oakland City Council. This caused some friction in the tenant’s movement at the time, and some members of Just Cause Oakland distanced themselves from what was agreed upon by the Oakland Tenants Union in “Dick Spees Task Force.”

Back then on July 10, 2001, Alex Salazar of Just Cause Oakland stated that he believes that the position of Just Cause Oakland at this point, is that they do not endorse rent increases for renters of Oakland.

Despite the friction occurring in the tenant’s movement in Oakland back then, Just Cause Oakland and Oakland tenants remained united to move forward in 2002 with the just cause eviction protection initiative (Measure EE) that the voters passed into law during November of 2002.

Landlords File Lawsuit Against Oakland Over Measure EE / Just Cause Protections:

On January 31, 2003, landlords filed a lawsuit against the City of Oakland over Measure EE. “The landlords claimed that Measure EE is unconstitutional, that it supersedes California state law, and violates the property rights of the property owners. At the time, the lawsuit sought to overturn provisions in Measure EE that restrict unfair evictions and allows tenants the right to a jury trial and damage awards by seeking an injunction to prohibit the city from enforcing the new rent laws that went into effect as recent as December 27, 2002.”

It was on October 26, 2005 that members of Just Cause Oakland and Oakland tenants appeared at the Alameda County Superior Court in support of Oakland’s Just Cause eviction protections, known as Measure EE. The tenants and activists were there during a hearing in front of Judge Steven Brick in regards to a lawsuit filed by the landlords against Measure EE, and the City of Oakland. Judge Brick was expected to make a ruling within 90 days.

In a major victory for Just Cause Oakland, and the tenants of Oakland, on January 4, 2006, the lawsuit seeking to overturn Measure EE was rejected by Judge Steven Brick of the Alameda County Superior Court.

Oakland’s just cause eviction protections have worked to save tens of thousands of renters from no-cause evictions.

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

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