The URL can be used to link to this page

Home My WebLink AboutCorrespondence - Item 24 Becerra, Alexis From: Bulmaro Vicente <boomer@chispaoc.org> Sent: Tuesday, October 7, 2025 1:00 PM To: eComment Subject: 10/07 SA Public Comment: Item 24 Attachments: Chispa Item 24 Letter 10.07.25 Santa Ana CC.docx.pdf Attention: This email originated from outside of City of Santa Ana.Use caution when opening attachments or links. Hi, Please find Chispa's attached letter of support for Item 24 In Solidarity, Boomer Policy and Political Director I Chispa e: boomerPchispaoc.org c: 714-747.4271 1505 E 17th Street Suite 117 Santa Ana, CA 92705 Chispa is building a political home for young Latinxs in Orange County! Please consider making a donation to help us build our casita. Chispa is a project of Tides Advocacy, a 5oic4 non-profit organization. 0 ..... ........... ....... ..o�ao... � ......... ,o.......F...o....,.Fom........... i October 7, 2025 Mayor Amezcua and City Councilmembers 20 Civic Center Plaza Santa Ana, CA 92701 ecomment(a)santa-ana.org Via Email RE: ITEM 24 - Consider Providing Direction to the City Manager and City Attorney to Direct Staff to Prepare an Ordinance Prohibiting the Use of Algorithmic Pricing Tools Dear Mayor Amezcua and City Councilmembers, On behalf of Chispa, I write to express our strong support for preparing an ordinance prohibiting the use of algorithmic pricing tools in the City of Santa Ana (City). This item is essential to ensuring fair rental practices, preventing anti-competitive behaviors, and protecting the affordability of housing for City residents. As an organization rooted in this City, Chispa is a membership-based movement of young Latinxs committed to uprooting systems of oppression and building structures grounded in community accountability, solidarity, and self-determination. We support this ordinance because our members—many of whom are renters themselves—are directly impacted by rising housing costs. Allowing landlords to collude through algorithmic tools only worsens displacement, instability, and economic hardship for our communities. California has one of the largest renter populations in the nation, with millions of households spending more than a third of their income on rent.' Now, tech has come in to supercharge the affordability crisis. The emergence of rental pricing algorithms has turned competitors into collaborators by assessing collective price data to find the highest rate—and directing its landlord users to adopt it. Ongoing lawsuits allege that 80-90% of users implement AI-backed, profit-maximizing recommendations. 'Renter Cost Burdens Reach Record Levels I Joint Center for Housing Studies. liUs://www.jchs.harvard.edu/son-2023-cost-burdens-ma. Accessed 18 Mar. 2025. 2 Walicek,Tyler. "Real Estate Software Aided Price-Fixing`Cartel' Among US Property Companies." Truthout,28 July 2024,https://truthout.org/articles/real-estate-software-aided-price-fixing-cartel-among-us-property-companies/. 1 The Council of Economic Advisors conservatively estimated that such practices added $3.8 billion in costs for renters in 2023 alone.' Continued reliance on these tools will only further distort California's housing market and deepen the affordability crisis. While SB 52 (Perez) attempted to address this issue at the state level, its stall in committee underscores the need for local leadership. The proposed ordinance would: 1. Prohibit the use of algorithmic pricing tools by landlords operating residential properties in Santa Ana. 2. Ban the sale or licensing of such tools within the City. 3. Define key terms such as "algorithmic device" to ensure clarity and enforceability. 4. Establish enforcement mechanisms that empower the City to hold violators accountable through penalties and remedies. Santa Ana would not be alone in this effort. In California, cities including San Francisco, San Diego, Berkeley, and Santa Monica have already adopted ordinances prohibiting algorithmic rent pricing, recognizing the serious threat these tools pose to tenants. Altogether, 11 cities across the country have implemented similar protections, including Seattle, Portland, and Philadelphia. By following their lead, Santa Ana can join forward-thinking cities across California that are stepping in where state action has stalled, protecting renters from exploitation in a tech-driven housing market. Ongoing lawsuits may take years to resolve, but our residents cannot wait. Santa Ana deserves strong antitrust protections that reflect today's realities and ensure renters have a fair chance at secure, affordable housing. We urge the Council to advance this ordinance to safeguard renters, strengthen transparency, and uphold the City's commitment to housing justice. Sincerely, _ Bulmaro Vicente Policy and Political Director CC: VAmezcua&santa-ana.org JessieLopezLSanta-ana.ors "'The Cost of Anticompetitive Pricing Algorithms in Rental Housing I CEA."The White House, 17 Dec. 2024, https://bidenwhitchouse.archives.gov/cea/written-materials/2024/12/17/the-cost-of-anticompetitive-pricing-algorith ms-in-rental-housing/. 2 TPhan&santa-ana.org JRyanHernandezLSanta-ana.org B Vazquez(a)santa-ana.org DPenaloza&Santa-ana.or PBacerra&Santa-ana.org 3