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In light of the burgeoning medical marijuana industry in California, CAA will pursue legislation this year clarifying that landlords can prohibit the smoking of marijuana by tenants in apartments, just as they can ban the smoking of tobacco products.
The California Apartment Association’s bill comes amid conflicting marijuana laws at the federal, state and local levels that have created challenges for both landlords and tenants.
One of the most prolific problems rental property owners face today is the tenant who uses marijuana with a valid medical card. Many neighboring tenants complain that smoking marijuana is a nuisance and that it… Read More
Tagged: LegislationLegislature
To help California’s low-income families secure housing, elected officials should focus more on encouraging private residential development and less on existing government programs that subsidize construction or impose rent control, the Legislative Analyst’s Office says.
Removing barriers to private construction, however, will take time and a political shift, says the report, released Wednesday by the nonpartisan office, which advises the Legislature on fiscal and policy matters.
“Doing so will require policymakers to revisit long–standing state policies on local governance and environmental protection, as well as local planning and land use regimes,” says the study, Perspectives on Helping Low-Income Californians Afford… Read More
The California Apartment Association is preparing to fight what’s almost certain to be a major statewide, legislative push to broaden the reach of rent control.
The rent control debate heads to the Capitol after a number of cities have considered either introducing or expanding the policy.
In Sacramento, where the 2016 legislative session began this past Monday, tenant advocates have the Costa-Hawkins Act in their cross hairs.
Under Costa-Hawkins, cities can’t impose rent control on housing built after 1995. The act also exempts single-family homes and condos, regardless of construction date. Without the protections of Costa-Hawkins, rent control would have… Read More
As we plunge into 2016, the California Apartment Association is building on a strong foundation of government affairs victories from the past 12 months, both at the state and local levels.
To help put the year gone-by in perspective, CAA’s public affairs team has selected the following successes as the Association’s Top 10 Legislative Victories of 2015.
Many of the issues described below will remain important topics in the year to come. Read more about CAA’s forecast for 2016 here.
In 2015, CAA proudly:
1. Led a petition drive to overturn Richmond rent control ordinance
The Richmond City Council —… Read More
On the eve of the California Apartment Association’s June board meeting, members of the Legislature’s Moderate Democratic Caucus joined CAA VIPs for dinner.
About 20 of the “Mods” attended the event Wednesday, June 17, at Mulvaney’s in Sacramento. Assemblyman Henry Perea, D-Fresno, recognized the members of the caucus in attendance, and each spoke for a couple minutes.
A highlight of the dinner included Sen. Jerry Hill presenting a Senate resolution to Ron Granville. The resolution recognizes Granville’s leadership as president of the Association in 2014.
Photos by Mike Nemeth
Tagged: LeadershipLegislatureNews
For the second straight year, state Sen. Mark Leno has conceded defeat on a bill aimed at weakening the Ellis Act, legislation that protects a landlord’s right to leave the rental housing business.
Acknowledging the collapse of SB 364 this year, Leno said he’ll take it up again in January, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
More than a month ago, SB 364 failed to advance from the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee, where the California Apartment Association mounted fierce opposition.
The bill would undermine a landlord’s right to leave San Francisco’s rental housing business. The proposal would make many rental… Read More
Tagged: Ellis ActLegislationLegislature
A bill that would designate housing as substandard when any amount of mold is visible passed a state Senate committee this week.
SB 655 by Sen. Holly Mitchell, D-Los Angeles, moved out of the Senate Transportation and Housing Committee on Tuesday.
Mitchell says the bill is necessary for the health of families and their children.
While CAA believes that mold should be cleaned up in housing, SB 655 lacks a workable standard or definition for code enforcement or for property owners who want to stay in compliance with the law.
Having any amount of mold or just the smell as… Read More
Tagged: LegislationLegislature
The California Apartment Association this week supported a bill to help landlords stop tenants from cultivating marijuana in rental properties.
A common complaint by rental property owners, especially in Northern California, centers on the use and cultivation of marijuana in multifamily housing.
The bill, SB 643 by Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, would help address this issue by banning cultivation of medical marijuana in areas zoned residential.
The bill includes other provisions, such as:
Establishing the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation and requiring the bureau to license and regulate dispending facilities, cultivation sites, transporters and manufacturers of medical marijuana and medical… Read More
Tagged: LegislationLegislature
A bill that threatens to undermine a landlord’s right to leave San Francisco’s rental housing business stalled Tuesday in its first committee hearing.
The Senate Transportation and Housing Committee voted 6 to 5 against SB 364 by Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco.
Leno requested and was granted reconsideration, meaning it’s still possible that he’ll get the necessary six yes votes to advance the bill to the Judiciary Committee.
The bill, opposed by the California Apartment Association during Tuesday’s hearing, takes aim at the Ellis Act, landmark legislation passed in 1985 that bars local governments from making property owners stay in… Read More
A proposal that would cap rent increases for qualifying seniors in rent controlled communities has a new author in the state Legislature.
Originally, this proposal was the centerpiece of AB 697 by Assemblyman Kansen Chu, D-San Jose. At the request of the California Apartment Association, however, Chu removed all wording from the bill related to rent increase exemptions for seniors. Instead, the bill would now simply provide a tax credit for senior citizens.
The Service Employees International Union, which is behind the proposed cap on rent increases for qualifying seniors, then turned to Assemblywoman Nora Campos to incorporate this plan… Read More