Measure BB

Berkeley City Council Rent Stabilization Ordinance Amendments and Housing Retention

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Would use existing revenue to fund housing retention and homelessness prevention; modify certain grounds for eviction; remove rent control and registration exemptions for certain units; allow tenant associations and require owners to confer with them; limit the ways tenants can be charged for utilities; limit the maximum annual rent increase to 5%; eliminate suspension of rent controls during high vacancy; and require notice to new tenants of their rights. Measure BB requires a majority vote for passage.

Fiscal Impact: By establishing a program that funds housing retention and homelessness prevention, the city would likely incur administration and possible staffing costs.

Next Alameda County Measure: Measure CC

See Endorsements for Measure BB

Details

Pro/Con
Pro: 

Supporters argue that since 1980, Berkeley’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance has effectively regulated rent increases to provide stability for tenants, protect against arbitrary evictions and provide owners a fair return. Voters consistently support rent control as a key housing strategy. Measure BB, a long overdue update to respond to current needs based on best practices from other California cities, will:

  • Expand eviction protections

  • Set a maximum rent cap of 5% 

  • Help control rising utility costs 

  • Establish a new right to organize tenant associations 

  • Require corporate landlords to negotiate in good faith with tenant associations.  

Preventing eviction prevents homelessness. Measure BB also funds existing rent relief, establishing a $1.1 million/year goal for Berkeley’s Housing Retention Program.  

A YES vote on this measure means you support establishing a housing retention program and making changes to the City’s Rent Stabilization and Eviction laws to expand tenants rights.

Con: 

Opponents argue that Berkeley has some of the strongest rent control and tenant protections in the nation. But Berkeley doesn’t have a permanent Rent Relief Fund. During the pandemic, Berkeley’s Rent Relief Fund kept almost 1,000 people from being evicted. But the money ran out. Measure BB claims to fund rent relief but fails to provide any concrete plans. Instead, it states that it "may" allocate money for "homeless prevention" programs. 

A NO vote on this measure means you oppose establishing a housing retention program and making changes to the City’s Rent Stabilization and Eviction laws to expand tenants rights.

In Depth

This measure would enact a law requiring the City Manager to recommend how the City should use existing general fund revenues to fund a housing retention program and to prevent homelessness, with a goal of expending at least $1.18 million a year, adjusted for inflation. The City Manager would be authorized to establish rules and regulations for eligibility for the program.   

The measure would also amend the Rent Stabilization and Eviction for Good Cause Ordinance, codified in Chapter 13.76 of the Municipal Code, in numerous ways, including the following: 

  • Remove exemption from rent control and registration for units where the owner shares kitchen or bath facilities with the tenants if the owner moves in after the tenancy begins, and units owned by the Graduate Theological Union.  Additionally, if state law (Costa-Hawkins Act) changes, the exemption for newly constructed units would last 15 years after the City’s final inspection approval.

  • Modify certain grounds for eviction by prohibiting nonpayment evictions when a tenant owes less than one month of fair market rent, as determined by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development data; limiting evictions for breach of a lease to breaches that cause the property owner actual and substantial injury; and prohibiting evictions for failure to renew a lease.

  • Allow certain tenants representing at least 50% of the occupied rental units in a building to form an association, and require the owner to meet and confer in good faith with associations over issues common to all tenants. Only tenants at properties with ten or more units, or between one and nine units if managed by a property management company, would have the right to form an association.

  • Prohibit utility charges for new leases after February 6, 2024, unless the utility charge is included in the base rent and fixed during the tenancy, is separately metered in the tenant’s name, or complies with policies the Rent Board deems similar to metering.

  • Reduce the maximum allowable annual rent increase from 7% to 5%. 

  • Eliminate the ability of the City Council to remove price controls on rental units during periods of high vacancy. 

  • Require owners to give tenants written notice of their rights under the Ordinance and any claimed exemptions within 15 days of the start of the tenancy.

  • Require owners to file copies of eviction notices and lawsuits with the Rent Board within three days. 

  • Make non-substantive changes such as updating findings and removing outdated language. 

Measure CC on the 2024 general election ballot is a conflicting measure.  If this measure and Measure CC both pass, the measure with more affirmative votes will become law, and the other will not. 

Source: City of Berkeley Ballot Measure Documents

Voter Resources

City of Berkeley Voter Information

Alameda County Election Resources

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