Councilwoman Owens introduces ordinance to protect tenant organizing and prevent retaliation

Councilwoman Owens introduced an ordinance at the Equitable Growth and Housing Committee meeting intended to protect tenant organizing and prevent landlord retaliation. Owens said the work grew from a broader effort around a tenants27 bill of rights and noted that the city27s renter population is "60% renters." "Every tenant deserves the right to advocate for the safe and quality conditions, that they find necessary in their living conditions," Owens said.

Michael Reiser, senior supervising attorney at the Legal Aid Society, spoke during public comment and thanked Owens for sponsoring the ordinance. "This ordinance is so important because many residents we speak to fear, retaliation as a deterrent to exercising their lawful, rights as tenants," Reiser said. He told the committee that Legal Aid represents tenants in housing conditions cases, eviction defense and affirmative suits to cure outstanding code violations.

Owens said the ordinance builds on prior city actions, including what she described as the passage of Access to Counsel and rental-assistance partnerships with United Way, the Help Center and Legal Aid; she also referenced prior measures making illegal set-outs and utility shutoffs unlawful. Owens thanked city law department staff Mark Manning and Rebecca Sally and community partners including "Ria of Greater Cincinnati," the Cincinnati Homeless Coalition and the Cincinnati Tenants Union for working on the ordinance.

At the meeting Chair Mark Jeffries said he would "put, item number 2 on for passage." The record from this meeting does not show a subsequent roll-call vote or final adoption; the action recorded was placing the ordinance on for passage at this session.