Volunteers say they gathered 9,000+ signatures to force Salinas vote after council repealed renter protections

A volunteer group supporting renter protections told the Salinas City Council on July 1 that it has gathered more than 9,000 valid signatures to put a referendum on the November ballot challenging the council’s recent repeal of rent-stabilization measures.

Protect Salinas Renters campaign representatives said at the start of the public-comment period that more than 200 volunteers helped collect the signatures and urged the council to reverse its repeal. “We are proud to share that we have gathered over 9,000 signatures to put a referendum on the ballot in response to the uninformed and harmful decision that five of you made last month to repeal rent stabilization, renter protections, and our newly established rental registry,” the group told council members.

The petitioners said the repeal ended two years of community engagement and technical work involving tenants, landlords, nonprofits and city staff. Speakers urged council members who supported the repeal to “do the right thing” and restore the earlier ordinances rather than leave the ballot decision to voters.

Several individual residents also addressed the council during public comment. Maria Chavez, who identified herself as from District 4 and said she is one of the volunteers, told the council the petition drive would continue: “We have 9,000 signatures, and we’re still going to continue looking for more signatures and getting more. Nothing’s going to stop us.” Jaime Rodriguez, who said he represents North Salinas and works in agriculture, appealed to council members to consider living conditions for farmworkers’ families if rents rise.

Not all public commenters supported the renters’ petition. David Masenev said he personally opposes rent stabilization but supports placing the question on the ballot so voters can decide. Other speakers recounted individual housing problems and urged the council to weigh constituent concerns.

The council did not take formal action on the petitions at the July 1 meeting. Under state election and local referendum procedures, campaign organizers now must submit their petitions to the city clerk for verification. If verified and certified, the referendum would appear on a future municipal ballot and could either reinstate or permanently eliminate the previously adopted ordinances depending on the voters’ choice.

The speakers who addressed the council on this subject emphasized different remedies — some asked the council to rescind its repeal immediately, while others said they preferred a ballot decision that would let residents decide the policy. Council members did not debate or vote on a reversal at the meeting; several members later acknowledged hearing widespread concern at public comment.