Mountain View staff to draft anti-harassment, anti-retaliation tenant protections after RHC study-session

The Mountain View Rental Housing Committee voted informally Thursday to proceed with staff analysis and drafting of potential tenant anti-harassment and anti-retaliation protections for units covered by local rent-stabilization rules.

Staff framed the study session as a chance for the committee to provide direction to staff on “potential local residential tenant protections against harassment and retaliation” and to determine next steps. The committee gave general agreement to the proposed scope of work: further analysis, review of comparable jurisdictions, a follow-up study session, and eventual consideration by the committee for regulatory action.

Why it matters: staff said federal and state protections against harassment and retaliation are limited — federal protections generally cover discrimination based on protected classes and state retaliation law provides narrower remedies — and that local regulations can provide broader definitions, clearer enforcement paths and remedies…