Salinas council directs staff to draft repeal of rent-stabilization ordinances, orders rental-assistance plan and monthly housing report

The Salinas City Council voted on April 22, 2025, to direct staff to prepare draft ordinances to repeal the city's rent stabilization package and to return with a rental-assistance program and a standing monthly housing report.

The vote followed a prolonged staff presentation and hours of public comment from renters, landlords, community groups and health professionals. City staff told the council the residential registration and rent stabilization program launched Jan. 1 and has registered more than 11,000 units and collected about $1.4 million in fees so far, while start-up expenditures to April 14 totaled $232,479 and an interim general-fund loan of $205,203 was used for initial cashflow.

The program the council adopted in 2023 and 2024 combined four local ordinances: (1) a rental registration ordinance, (2) a rent stabilization ordinance (limits on amount and frequency of rent increases), (3) a just-cause eviction and tenant protection ordinance and (4) a tenant anti-harassment ordinance. Staff and the consultant told the council those rules were intended to protect tenants and to create a process for landlord petitions when extraordinary costs threatened a property's rate of return.

City staff said the registration launch produced heavy demand for in-person help: three program staff answered more than 7,000 phone calls, 833 emails and 532 in-person appointments between January and mid-April. The staff report lists a six-month startup budget of $655,250 (salaries, software, a hearing officer, outreach and indirect costs) and notes the program has already collected fees that exceed expenditures to date, enabling repayment of the general-fund startup loan if that trend continues.

Council debate focused on two competing lines of argument: (a) renters and public-health leaders urged the council to preserve the local protections and give the ordinances time to take effect, arguing those rules provide immediate protections against displacement; (b) other council members and several property owners said the ordinances risk driving small owners from the market, reducing rental supply and deterring future development unless the city pairs any tenant protections with stronger actions to increase housing supply.

Lisa Bridal, the staff presenter, summarized the implementation status: "The program successfully launched on January 1," and staff set up a platform, a hotline and office hours to process registrations. The city manager and other staff repeatedly flagged that Sherwood Hall and other city facilities have required repeated emergency repairs, "so it is draining city resources," as the city manager told council members during the discussion.

After a series of competing motions and substitutes, the council approved a substitute motion directing staff to draft repeal ordinances for the four rent-related ordinances and to return with a rental-assistance program and a monthly housing report to track supply, development and program impacts. The final vote was 5-2: yes votes from Councilmembers Barajas, D'Arrigo, De La Rosa, Salazar and Mayor Donahue; no votes from Councilmembers Barrera and Sandoval.

The action does not automatically nullify existing state law: the city attorney reminded the council the state's AB 1482 (and related state protections) remain in effect and that some city protections are more restrictive than state law. Staff said they will return with draft repeal language and with recommendations for how to preserve enforcement of specific tenant protections or services where the city chooses to do so.

Councilmembers and staff said they want to pair any repeal with an emphasis on increasing housing supply and clearer communication with residents. Several council members called for convening landlords, tenants and service providers to develop alternatives before any ordinance change is finalized. Staff said they will include community engagement in the follow-up process.

What happens next: staff were directed to prepare draft repeal ordinances and to return with a plan for a rental-assistance program and a monthly housing report for council review. The council took the vote after receiving detailed implementation numbers and days of public comment but did not adopt final repeal language at the April 22 meeting.

Votes at a glance: The motion to direct staff to draft repeal ordinances and to return with rental assistance and a monthly housing report passed, 5-2 (Barajas, D'Arrigo, De La Rosa, Salazar, Mayor Donahue in favor; Barrera and Sandoval opposed).