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Supervisor Matt Gonzalez has reintroduced sweeping new legislation intended to extend the reach of the city’s rent control ordinance. The legislation contains no findings which might provide an indication of why the author believes any of the proposed actions are needed.
The legislation would:
- Prohibit owners from severing parking or storage or similar facilities without just cause or consent;
- Extend coverage of the ordinance to non-tourist tenancies in residential hotels by eliminating the 32-day residency requirement for those tenancies;
- Limit the imposition of banked increases to eight percent;
- Prohibit rent increases or evictions solely for additional occupants where the total number of occupants is within Housing Code occupancy limits;
- Extend the statute of limitations for overpayment refunds;
- Require relocation expenses of $2,000 for each authorized occupant who has lived in a unit for 12 months as of the time of vacation of the unit, where the unit is to be demolished or otherwise permanently removed from housing use, or where the tenant must relocate due to capital improvements or substantial rehabilitation work or an owner move-in eviction, with these amounts to be increased annually according to the rate of increase in the rent expenditure category of the Consumer Price Index;
- Provide that a tenant may also pursue civil remedies for abridgement of certain rights against a rental property owner’s successor in interest;
- Clarify that the protections of Chapter 5, Section 503(d) of the Housing Code extend to all persons by deleting the reference to “families”; and
- Clarify that Chapter 5, Section 503(d) of the Housing Code promotes affordable housing and protects prospective and current tenants.
The legislation has not been calendared to be heard in committee. Meanwhile, the Association will be meeting with allied organizations to formulate a strategy for opposing the legislation.
January 2003
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