SAN PABLO, California - Tenant advocates are ready to put a rent control measure on the November ballot in San Pablo, while renter and landlord groups across the Bay Area have launched dueling campaigns.
Tenant groups led by the Los Angeles-based Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment have submitted to the East Bay city more than 1,500 signatures needed to bring a measure to cap rent increases and add renter protections before voters, the East Bay Times reported.
Officials will now work to verify the signatures.
In addition to San Pablo, tenant groups led by the alliance are coordinating signature gathering campaigns for rent control measures in Redwood City, Pittsburg and Larkspur, according to the Times.
The proposed ballot measures in each city would cap yearly rent increases to 60 percent of the inflation rate and no more than 3 percent or 5 percent in total, depending on the city. They would also beef up enforcement of current renter protections and add rules against tenant harassment.