We are the homeless capital of the nation. How can this be if we have rent control?

We fully support Assembly Member Richard Bloom's AB 1506 to repeal the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act.

Los Angeles is a city of renters with 64% of the residents being renters. Yet, 64% of those renters are paying unaffordable rents.

LA is the most unaffordable city in the nation for renters with tenants paying the highest percentage of their income to rent in the nation. We have the highest poverty rate in the country at 26%, meaning one out of ever four households is living in poverty.

We have the most over crowded conditions with 7 out of the 10 top zip codes with the most over crowed housing conditions here in LA.

We are the homeless capital of the nation. How can this be if we have rent control? Two answers: the Costa-Hawkins Housing Act and the Ellis Act, which provides landlords the ability to leave the rental market and evict tenants.

The Costa-Hawkins Act ties the ability for local governments to adequately address their housing needs. The reason LA cannot pass an inclusionary housing ordinance to obtain more affordable housing units the City so desperately needs, is because of the Costa-Hawkins Act.

The Costa-Hawkings Act puts a bulls eye on the back of every long term, low rent tenant in every rent control jurisdiction in the state. That's because landlords know if they can get those tenants to move, either by legal or illegal means, they can jack up rents without limits due to mandated vacancy decontrol.

This is the reason why 64% of Angeleno renters are paying unaffordable rents.

If we are every going to adequately address our affordable housing crisis we must let local municipalities have the flexibility to develop policies to address the particular needs of their communities.

That's why we fully support the repeal of the Costa Hawkins Housing Act and that's why AB 1506 should be passed by the State Legislature.

LARRY GROSS

Executive Director

Coalition for Economic Survival (CES)