Item 26 - Long-Term Implementation Plan for the Rent Stabilization and Just Cause Eviction Ordinances

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Long-Term Implementation Plan for the Rent Stabilization and Just Cause Eviction Ordinances September 6, 2022 Page 6 2 9 3 0 could potentially collect approximately $6.7 million annually for a fully operating program. Currently, the City’s ordinance costs over $300,000 per year and will increase to $500,000 in the next fiscal year with no cost recapture. The fee study will account for the most cost- effective way to implement the long-term implementation plan, including the consideration of utilizing consultants. The results of the fee study will be used to establish the amount of the rental registry fee to be collected from landlords and tenants (Recommendation # 3). The Sample Jurisdictions provided information on the staffing needed to effectively implement their ordinances and emphasized that staffing plans are constantly evolving based on annual analysis of the rental registry fees expended and collected for departmental operations since the inception of their programs. RSG’s Long-Term Implementation Plan includes organizational charts for a few of the Sample Jurisdictions. In order to effectively implement the Long-Term Implementation Plan, staff estimates a minimum of 12 staff members would be needed upon initial program implementation. By completing a fee study and analyzing annual data after program inception, the City will be able to produce a financial projection of revenue, expenses, and reserves for a fully operational program. 6. Expand Compliance Activities The next four recommendations for the Long-Term Implementation Plan are important activities to consider as part of the work plan (Recommendation # 4) and fee study (Recommendation # 5). The City’s RSO and JCEO currently states the following if any person is in violation, “It shall be unlawful for any person to violate or fail to comply with any provision of the ordinance. The violation of any provision of this ordinance shall first be punished through the use of an administrative citation, as provided in Santa Ana Municipal Code section 1-21, et. seq., prior to prosecution as a misdemeanor infraction”. Currently, there are limited resources within the City that can adjudicate a dispute over tenant/landlord issues or concerns, short of the Court system, which can be time- consuming and costly. Identifying how the RSO and JCEO will be monitored for compliance will allow the City to more effectively uphold the provisions of the ordinances. The positive impacts of the RSO and JCEO programs are directly correlated to effective monitoring of compliance with the ordinances. Furthermore, some Sample Jurisdictions mentioned that staffing capacity and resources were the major drivers in their ability to proactively enforce violations of the ordinances. An analysis of the existing best practices and programs administered by Sample Jurisdictions determined that effective compliance activities include issuing notices and warnings in response to complaints and reported information in the rental registry, increasing staffing to issue citations and pursue criminal offenses, and contracting with a mediator to improve landlord-tenant relationships, among other activities. 7. Create a Landlord Capital Improvement Petition and Tenant Petition Generally, there are three types of petitions: 1) landlord fair return petitions, 2) landlord capital improvement petitions, and 3) tenant petitions. Currently, the City’s RSO only has