Ventura’s new tenant anti-harassment program starts enforcement after Feb. 2026 ordinance

Jennifer Felton, a Ventura County real estate attorney, told an audience that the City of Ventura adopted a local anti-harassment program that took effect in February 2026 and creates a city-level enforcement and mediation pathway for tenant harassment claims.

Felton said the program "gives the tenant their day in court but it also gives the landlord their right to their day in court" and described the process as a mediation-driven enforcement tool that can result in fines if landlords decline to participate. The program is intended to provide tenants and landlords a mediated resolution before litigation, she said.

The ordinance will allow tenants who believe they are being harassed by a landlord to bring a city complaint that triggers an enforcement action and mediation, Felton said. If a landlord refuses to engage in the mediation process, the city can impose penalties; the program also gives landlords an opportunity to respond and defend themselves through the same process.

Felton placed the local rule in the context of layered protections: federal baseline law, broader California statutes and now the city-level enforcement mechanism. She encouraged landlords to maintain documented complaint procedures and to respond promptly to allegations, both to reduce escalation and to demonstrate compliance in any subsequent city review.

She also pointed attendees to local resources that work with the city—Housing Rights Center, Ventura Housing Authority and regional fair housing planning groups—and promoted an upcoming fair-housing symposium organized by the Ventura County Coastal Association of Realtors and the city.

The presentation ended with Felton urging landlords and tenants to use the city program as a front-line dispute-resolution tool to avoid costly litigation; she said the city’s mediation approach is intended to de-escalate conflicts and clarify rights under existing state and federal law.