San Mateo commission holds second anti-displacement workshop; Nov. 20 minutes approved

SAN MATEO, Calif. — At a regular meeting of the San Mateo City Community Relations Commission, staff led a second community workshop on anti-displacement and tenant-protection policies tied to the city's 2024 housing element and commissioners unanimously approved the minutes of the Nov. 20, 2024, commission meeting.

The workshop, presented by Jennifer, housing staff for the City of San Mateo, and Rachel, city staff, reviewed the housing element's three-part framework (production, preservation and protection) and three proposed policies to expand tenant protections. Jennifer said the proposals include strengthening local enforcement and penalties, requiring tenant relocation payments for certain no-fault evictions for occupants with tenure of less than one year, and monitoring rents and displacement trends through options such as a rental registry. Jennifer said staff intends to recommend specific policies to the City Council and pursue implementation between 2024 and 2026.

Rachel, city staff, summarized outreach to legal-service providers and community organizations. She reported that providers told staff demand for legal services grew about 68% from 2018 to 2023; nonpayment-of-rent cases have more than doubled since 2018; and unlawful-detainer filings also increased in the most recent year. "This tells us the primary driver of displacement is difficulty paying rent," Rachel said. She added that AB 1482 (the Tenant Protection Act of 2019) has helped but that knowledge of the law is uneven among tenants and landlords.

Staff walked commissioners through state and local legal context. Jennifer said AB 1482 caps annual rent increases at 5% plus local CPI or 10%, establishes just-cause protections for tenants who have lived in a unit at least one year, and requires additional documentation and relocation assistance for certain no-fault evictions. She also noted that SB 567 added stricter documentation requirements for owner move-in and substantial rehabilitation no-fault evictions. City code provisions already in place that staff identified include Chapter 7.5 (a red-tag policy that can provide temporary or permanent relocation assistance and a right to return), the condo-conversion chapter (requiring relocation assistance up to three times HUD fair-market rent and a right-to-purchase), and development-code relocation provisions that also set three-times HUD FMR and moving-cost allowances up to $1,000.

The commission opened the meeting to public comment and heard 22 in-person speakers and one remote commenter. Public remarks reflected a wide range of views. Christa Hansen, a member of the Peninsula Solidarity Cohort, urged the city to "take meaningful action to keep renters in their homes," saying many San Mateo renters are "highly vulnerable" and that eviction can cause long-term harm to children. Paola Arellano Rosales of the Housing Leadership Council of San Mateo County (part of the Our Home San Mateo coalition) endorsed a right to return after substantial remodels and proposed limited, capped rent increases to allow return without displacement.

Faith-based and tenant-advocacy speakers including Reverend Jessica Vacotta and Reverend Alvaro Duran urged immediate expansions such as just-cause protections from day one of tenancy, restrictions on no-fault evictions during the school year, increased relocation payments and a rental-data system. "People's dignity is not a business," Duran said, calling housing a human-rights issue.

Speakers representing property-owner interests urged caution. Elaine Gilbrecht, executive officer of Samcar (San Mateo County Association of Realtors), told the commission "more education for everyone on AB 1482 could solve a lot of the problems" and said her group opposed expanding protections beyond the state law. Several mom-and-pop landlords and representatives of the California Apartment Association warned additional requirements and relocation payments could impose heavy costs and urged enforcement of existing laws and landlord education.

Commissioners and staff acknowledged the lack of comprehensive city-level data as a constraint. Commissioner Nugent noted that staff had not been able to quantify where AB 1482 is underused or which provisions are failing for local tenants. Rachel said that while some county and regional data exist, the city lacks robust local rental-condition data and that is one reason staff is studying options such as a rental registry and partnerships with regional agencies (for example, ABAG and 21 Elements) to obtain more precise metrics.

No formal action was taken on the policy proposals. Jennifer reiterated that tonight was a listening session: "There will be no actions taken based on tonight's meeting," and staff will compile comments for a City Council study session planned for March. Commissioners asked staff to return with additional information about precedents in neighboring jurisdictions, the costs and maintenance requirements of rental registries, and the demonstrated benefits or burdens such registries produced elsewhere.

Votes at the meeting were limited to routine business: the commission approved the consent calendar item to adopt the minutes of the Nov. 20, 2024, regular meeting. A motion to approve the minutes was seconded and passed on a roll-call vote with Chair Bowles, Vice Chair Fitzgerald, Commissioner Cromwell, Commissioner Nugent and Commissioner Kim all voting yes.

Next steps: staff said public comments will be accepted through mid-February as they prepare materials for the City Council study session in March; staff provided contact information for further input and offered one-on-one or group meetings by request.